Common Ground
by Skylark91
Summary: AU set after the events of Season 2 Episode 3. As the group escapes Carver's clutches and finds shelter among the ruins of Parker's Run, young Clementine pays the price of someone else's actions. Who will survive the chain reaction that will ensue?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** Hey there, long time no see! I started writing this story in June 2014, way before E4S2: _Amid the Ruins_ came out, so this is basically an AU set a few days after the events of Ep.3. Some of you may already know this ff as it was also posted on my DA account back in the day, but I never managed to actually finish it. Hopefully this time I will though, so... enjoy it!

 **Disclaimer : **I do not own The Walking Dead.

* * *

 **Common Ground**

 _"Where's your hat, Clementine?"_

 _"I don't know. Can you help me find it?"_

"C'mon, Clem, keep up the pace."

Clementine sighs as Kenny's voice wakes her up from her thoughts. She shudders in her coat and moves closer to the man, who's regarding her with a concerned light in his one good eye. Snow is falling softly around them and the chances of finding some kind of prey to bring back to camp are getting slimmer with each passing minute. The girl tries to keep her mind off her hat, which has gone missing sometime between their escape from Howe's Hardware and the day before; it's a difficult task, though, as the event can't help but bring back memories of her dad and... Lee. The time spent with him at that motor inn… _shoot_ , it felt like a _life_ ago. Instead, two years and a half had passed, and while Lee was surely in a better place now, she was still trying to survive in this merciless and unforgiving world.

"What is it, darlin'?" Kenny has stopped, waiting for her. "I thought ya said you've been waitin' for this moment all day long," he says, as he looks down at her. His concerned expression softens a little when his eye lands on the empty spot on her curly hair. "Still thinkin' about yer hat?"

The girl nods quietly. She doesn't really feel like talking about it, it's still difficult for her to bring up Lee. Kenny seems to notice she'd rather move on, as he doesn't inquire any further. "Must have fallen in the horde, I'm sorry, hon," he says.

"It's okay," she speaks softly, as she keeps her eyes down. She knows her words didn't sound convincing at all, even though she's trying her best to accept the fact she will probably never wear her hat again. "Luke said he'd look for it around the ruins while he's searching for supplies... in case it fell in Parker's Run."

" _Humpf_ ," Kenny groans, "well, I hope he finds it - and soon, since we should move to a safer place any day now, but I wouldn't get my hopes up, Clem: that guy still has to show what he's good at..." He pauses for a second and his eye catches Clementine's expression growing even more upset than before. _Shit, me and my fuckin' mouth._ He clears his throat a bit, before speaking again. "Anyway, I guess it's never too late for that, huh? Try not to worry 'bout it."

Clementine smiles a bit, appreciating his good intentions. As they proceed through the forest, striving to make as little noise as possible, she thinks about what Walter told her back at the ski lodge, right after the Duck incident.

 _"I suspect they'll find common ground soon enough."_

Actually, that miracle has yet to come. After their escape from Carver's camp, about five days ago, they've found shelter in the museum which looms right over Parker's Run, and since then, not a hour goes by without the two of them arguing over the smallest of things. Luke's intention is to stay a few more days there since Rebecca's baby should be coming soon and the group needs to rest, while Kenny wants to push on to find supplies as soon as Sarita feels better. She has improved a lot since her amputation thanks to Bonnie's medical supplies, and this is the first time Kenny has agreed to leave her side in order to find something to eat. They're short on food as they only have what Bonnie has managed to put in her backpack before helping them escape.

 _Where do they find the energies to be at each other's throat every minute...?_

"Hey. _Clem_ ," Kenny's hand on her shoulder almost makes her jump. "You okay? I was talkin' to ya."

The eleven year old lifts her head to stare into the one-eyed man's warm gaze. "I... y-yes, I'm fine... Sorry," she says, giving him a little smile in order to reassure him.

Kenny considers her for a few more instants, still unsure about her answer. "It's okay, hon, but you gotta concentrate now," he gives her shoulder a gentle squeeze, before pointing towards some bushes up ahead of them. "That's a good spot. The walkers won't creep on us if we stay quiet... Did ya see those marks back there, didn't ya?"

"Yeah," she says, as they keep moving to reach the place, "could it really be a boar?" she asks, remembering the peculiar pattern of the trail they have been following since that morning.

"I believe so... anyway, we'll find out very soon," he answers, lowering his voice as they get closer to the bushes. "Alright," he sighs, once they're well hidden, "here, show me how you hold the rifle."

Clementine's eyebrow arches slightly. Last time she had tried to use one, it didn't go that well. "Uhm, Kenny, are you sure...?"

"'Course I am, darlin'," Kenny chuckles lightly, before turning serious again, "you gotta learn fast if you wanna have a better chance in this crazy-ass world."

Clementine grabs the weapon he's handing to her. It's still as heavy as she remembered. "Like this?" she asks, trying to mimic the way she has always seen him hold it.

"Almost. Put yer right elbow a little higher and a lil' back..." he explains, as he helps her getting the position right by slightly moving her arm, "... yeah, just like that. It'll help you to control the recoil better, and your arm shouldn't hurt that much afterward. Here you go, steady..."

"Kenny, look!" Clementine eyes suddenly catch a movement on the other side of the clearing they were in. "There's something over those bushes."

"Yeah, I saw it," he says in a whisper. "Now, quiet… we're gonna wait 'till we see what comes out of it."

They remain silent, breathing slowly and keeping their focus on the vegetation ahead. Clementine's mind races to what could possibly be hiding in there; she's quite sure it can't be a walker, because they'd hear it growling long before by now. She just hopes that whatever it is, it's going to come out soon enough: the snow is getting thicker and thicker and the bushes they're in will soon be filled with it, freezing them even more than they already are.

As the minutes pass and they stay crouched under their cover, a distinct sound comes to their ears.

"It's grunting... it's our boar!" Clementine gasps slightly, without being able to refrain a note of excitement in her voice.

"Yeah, and it's one big piece of meat, too," Kenny nods, just as the black furred animal emerges from the foliage. The bearded man glances seriously at the girl: no time to fool around when the beast could become dangerous any moment. "You wanna take the shot, kid?"

"I..." Clementine's eyes widen briefly; her gaze moves from Kenny to the boar, then it focuses back on the rifle in her hands. It suddenly felt a lot heavier than before. What if she failed at her shot, wasting what would most likely be their only chance to bring something back to camp? Kenny would get it, though. She knew it.

"It's alright," he says quietly, noticing her hesitation, as he takes the weapon from her hands and rises it up. "You can take the next one in case I miss and we have to go after it."

Clementine watches as he adjusts the butt of the rifle against his shoulder and uses his right knee to gain more balance; the girl hears him take a small breath while he carefully aims at their prey walking out of the bushes. The animal is focusing on the ground, leaving its foot-prints on the thin layer of snow that covers their surroundings, while he's completely unaware of Kenny's finger slowly falling on the trigger...

 _BANG!_

The shot rings through the forest, leaving Clementine speechless as she sees the boar jerk and stumble in the distance. The beast screams in pain and staggers for a moment, before bursting off in a sprint through the trees, away from them.

" _Sonuvabitch_ ," Kenny curses under his breath as he rises and lifts his head, looking after the wounded boar. "C'mon, Clem, we gotta catch it before walkers arrive!"

"It can't have gone too far, right? You shot him right in its side," Clementine follows him closely as they proceed as fast as they can through the brush.

"Yeah, couldn't hit its heart, though." Kenny stops in his tracks and turns to move some of the lower branches out of the girl's way, so she could easily pass through. "You see that blood trail down there? We're close, darlin', I tell ya," he says, giving her a triumphant grin.

Clementine returns it, as Kenny's enthusiasm is too contagious to resist. She's been enjoying their hunting trip so far, and now that they're on the verge of catching something, she can't help but feel giddy with excitement. For a moment, the walkers are the last of her thoughts.

Almost fifteen minutes pass before they can catch again sight of their prey. They crouch for a second time among the vegetation, observing as the boar slows its steps and falters across the clearing.

"Alright," Kenny looks down, as he moves the rifle towards the girl, "you ready?"

"It seems a bit far... Why don't we just go finish him off?"

"Clem, are you kiddin' me? Did you see those tusks? Boars are dangerous 'till they breath, we take the shot from here." She slowly nods and he smiles a bit. "Relax, hon, I'll help ya. Here," he says, reassuringly, as she takes the rifle he's handing her, "I'll hold your shoulders so you won't fall. Now, just focus while aiming at it," he sees the girl positioning the weapon the same way he showed her before. "Like this, Clem… good..."

Clementine tightens her grip on the rifle, taking in everything Kenny's telling her. She lets her muscles loosen enough while her eyes follow her prey, before holding her breath in her throat. She moves her finger on the trigger and then, slowly, she squeezes it down.

The noise of the rifle rings in her ears, as the boar screams a second time before crumpling to the ground, mortally shot in the neck.

"I-I did it..." she whispers, with a look of disbelief on her face.

"Holy shit!" Kenny's hand pats her on the shoulder, as he looks more excited than ever. "That was a _helluva_ shot, Clem! Come, let's go get it so we can get the hell outta 'ere... How's your arm?"

"Good, I think… you were right, it doesn't hurt as much as last time," she says, still a bit stunned by the loud noise of the rifle.

They approach their prey and stand over it for a few seconds, just to take in the sight of Clementine's wonderful shot. Then, the girl feels something soft - but big enough to partially cover her eyes - fall on her head; she smirks, rapidly shaking away her surprise, as she lifts Kenny's trucker hat a bit in order to look up at him.

"I believe ya just won a prize, little lady," he grins in return, before kneeling besides the boar to tie its hind legs with a rope, so he could drag it back to camp. "You did great," he says, turning back to face her, his smile softening, and Clementine is struck by the look of pride in his one good eye. It's literally shining bright with admiration and she can't help but feel a growing sensation of warm and happiness inside her chest. "I am so _damn_ proud of y-"

 _BANG_. A loud crack resonates across the clearing they're in, startling them and cutting off Kenny's speech. He doesn't immediately realize what's happening, until he sees Clementine's joyful smile fade as her body jolts forward and collapse to the ground with a soft _thump_.

" _Clem? CLEMENTINE!_ "

* * *

 _To be continued..._


	2. Chapter 2

" _Clem? CLEMENTINE!_ "

Horror fills Kenny's mind as he screams in shock and kneels over her body in a heart-beat. In a second, he draws his gun out and fires blindly in the direction of the rifle that has just shot the kid, trying to distract whoever the fuck has been stalking them. As he picks Clementine up to drag her out of the line of fire, he hears a howl of pain from someone he managed to hit and then the voice of some other bastard barking orders.

They're close, and they're clearly outnumbering them.

"... Clem?" he calls, looking down at the girl in his arms while he runs away from the clearing, as fast as the vegetation allows him to. His eye falls on the child's jacket, and he can see the hole through which the bullet has exited, on the front. "C'mon, darlin'... please... _please_ , answer me…"

Clementine's vision tries to focus, as she's brought back to reality by the tight, yet tender embrace someone's holding her into. She gasps at the sharp pain in her right side, and her sight slowly becomes less blurry, until Kenny's face comes into view. He's a mess, his skin so pale she could have mistaken him for a walker.

"K-Kenny..." she tries to say, though only a whisper escapes her lips.

His eye widens a bit. "Oh, thank God... it's alright, hon..." He slows down only to adjust her better in his arms, so he can press her injured side against his chest to stop the bleeding. "... 's just a scrape... you're gonna be fine..."

Clementine whimpers in pain at the pressure as she tries to hold her tears back, failing in the process. "... it h-hurts..."

"I know... I know, hon..." he speaks softly, looking down at the child's painful expression, while his heart is literally pounding against his rib-cage. "... it'll be alright... I promise ya-" His face goes suddenly whiter in the instant he realizes the kid's drifting off again. "Clem. _Clem_ , look at me," he says, his voice edged with fear as he feverishly scans her pale, sweaty features. "No, no, _no! Fuck!_ Stay with me, darlin'… you can't fuckin' leave me, _Clementine!_ "

Driven by the desperation that's eating him, he keeps running as he's never done before, neither when he had to flee a horde of walkers after trying to save Ben, nor after Carver's camp escape. He can feel his coat and his sweater gradually getting soaked in her blood, which pours from her once blue jacket. He's not thinking straight at the moment, but he tries his best to suppress the urge to yell her name over and over, 'cause he knows he can't risk to attract the walkers. He could never handle the pain to lose her… he simply couldn't… lose her _too_ …

" _I can almost see him!_ " he hears yelling behind him.

 _Fuck!_ He curses, as he tries to go faster, even if his legs are starting to give in. He had hoped the dead prey he left behind would keep those bastards occupied long enough to let him go undisturbed, but he was clearly wrong.

" _They may be with those robbers! Don't let 'em escape!_ "

 _What? The hell do they want from us...?_

A bullet flies inches away from his head, grazing the surface of a tree nearby. He ducks behind another one, taking a moment to catch his breath, and he hears Clementine letting out a hiss of pain. The girl is still fighting to stay awake.

"Don't worry, darlin'... these fuckers can't shoot for shit..." he pants, briefly glancing down at her, before pushing himself out of their cover for another sprint across the forest. The museum couldn't be too far now, since he was sure the vegetation around them was getting sparser with each step.

As he catches the first glimpses of the wood's end, he notices the shouts behind him are slowly dying down, replaced by the sound of gunshots in the opposite direction of where he's heading, and by the growls of walkers. Finally, the undead attention has been alerted.

"We're almost there, Clem..." he breaths, while his worn out legs move almost on their own, as if they were dragged towards the museum by an invisible force. "... just hang on..."

Parker's Run appears like a vision to him and Kenny tries not to stumble on the square's stone floor as soon as he starts to cross it, while his sight - blurry from sweat and tears - sets on the main entrance of the museum up ahead of him. Two indistinct frames, which are standing on watch in front of the doors, come into view.

"Kenny, what the hell's goin' on, man-?"

"Oh, God, _no! Clem!_ "

Kenny doesn't even spare a glance at Mike and Bonnie as he bursts inside, followed closely by the two.

"Mike, go get Luke... Nick, you take my place outside!" the woman quickly says, as she walks alongside Kenny.

The one eyed man can't hear any of the commotion going on around him, nor he can bring himself to look into Sarita's horrified eyes as he lays Clementine on one of the pallets they found in the museum, obviously owned by other survivors before them.

"Jesus, Kenny, what happened...?" says Rebecca, clearly aghast by the sight before her eyes.

"Clem, darlin'... it'll be alright... you're safe now..." it's all Kenny's rambling right now, while Bonnie starts to open the girl's jacket to see her injure.

 _Jesus, he's losing it..._ The red haired woman can hear the shock in his hoarse voice, as he holds Clementine's hand in his own bloodied ones. "Where's Luke when you need him...?"

"Hey, I'm here," Luke's voice comes from the entrance just a few seconds later, as he's followed by Jane, "I found Clem's hat and- wait, what's goin' on?"

"Go get my backpack, _quickly!_ " Bonnie uncovers Clementine's side as much as needed to see her injure. Her stare lingers where the shot had pierced through the external part of her right side, both on her front and her back.

"She's lucky," Jane almost makes the redhead jump, "it's a clean shot." As she kneels and starts to press on Clementine's wound, Bonnie gives her a glare, unsure about her intentions. "Come on, I can help. We need to stop the bleeding."

"Okay, okay..." Bonnie tries to focus as Luke returns with her backpack. "Shit, we used most of the stuff on Sarita's arm-"

"Here, I have some peroxide I _found_ this morning, search in my pocket," Jane quickly says, as Clementine softly moans in pain under the pressure of her hands, "we use that to disinfect on both sides. And this will help for the pain."

"Where did you get all these-?"

"Does it matter?" Jane hands her the small bottle of disinfectant. "You still have the stuff for stitches?" she urges, while Bonnie nods.

"Fuck," says Luke, alarmed by the state in which Clementine verses, "how the fuck did this happen?" His eyes find Kenny's slumped frame, his head bending between his shoulders and his broken gaze fixed on the little girl in front of him.

"Could you two give us some space, please?" Bonnie says, as she assists Jane in turning Clementine on her good side in order to tend to her back.

"Yeah, sure... sorry," Luke snaps out of his incredulity and glances again at Kenny; he then speaks up, seeing he's not moving. "Come on, Kenny-"

"I'm not goin' anywhere."

"Kenny, please..." Sarita tries to convince him, reaching for him, but he doesn't move.

"Luke, get him out of here, we need to work in peace."

"No! I am NOT gonna lose another child!" he angrily shouts, barely turning his head to face them. Grief and despair have turned his expression in a horrible mask and for a few seconds no one dares to speak.

Seeing things taking a bad turn, Mike steps in, "Kenny, you need to listen, man," he says, while grabbing him under his arms, firmly enough to make him budge. "They're gonna do their best to help her, but you need to calm down..."

"Get yer hands off me," he barks, wriggling away from him as he stands up; his furious gaze glances briefly at the people around him, before falling again on Clementine's barely breathing figure. She was still wearing his hat. "Their _best_ ain't enough," he says, his voice lower and filled with anguish. "They _have_ to save her."

Sarita rises on her feet and wraps her good arm around his mid, leading her wretched boyfriend away from the group, as the rest of them leave too, in order to give Bonnie and Jane their much needed space.

"I- I need a moment... alone."

As Kenny slowly frees himself from her hold, Sarita realizes she can barely recognize him anymore. He didn't look so miserable and lost even when she found him holed up in that old restaurant, after almost two weeks of starvation.

The man slides against a wall with his head in his bloodstained hands. "I failed her… I-I… _fuck_ … I should have known… I couldn't protect her…" the woman hears him mumbling, in a confused way, and she shuts her eyes closed, before trying to reach for him again.

"Kenny..."

" _Don't_ ," he warns, pulling away from her arm. He lets out an angry sigh, before speaking: "Everythin' I touch, everythin' I love- it all ends up in pieces," he finally fixes his eye on her, considering her sorrowful expression for a few seconds, before adding: "I won't let that happen to ya, too."

* * *

 _To be continued..._


	3. Chapter 3

_"Hey Lee, Lilly and Carley went out early to search for some- oh shit, what happened to ya, pal?"_

 _"Kenny, Lee's a bit sick, as you can see," Katjaa's words are followed by a strong sneeze across the motel room. Kenny's eyes blink a few times to get used to the dark, until he can recognize Lee's frame laying under piles of covers and Katjaa sitting on a chair beside his bed. "Why don't you keep an eye on Clementine for today? I need to assist him until he feels better."_

 _"... Lee?" A tiny voice speaks from behind Kenny, catching everyone's attention._

 _"Clementine, honey, don't come any closer," Lee's words sound very nasal as he speaks through his coughs._

 _"... Are you alright?" The child stops as soon as he tells her to, while looking at Katjaa, waiting for a confirmation._

 _"Lee's right, sweetie. You see, he's got a flu," she explains, smiling kindly at her, "he doesn't want you to catch it, too."_

 _"Oh," the little girl says, still a bit worried though, "... but you will be fine soon, right?"_

 _"Of course, sweet pea," Lee's raspy voice tries to sound encouraging, "I just need some rest, then I'll be as good as new..."_

 _"Don't worry, Clementine, I'll take good care of him," Katjaa says, reassuringly. "You can go with Ken."_

 _Kenny exchanges a brief look with Lee, whose eyes speak for themselves._ Keep good care of her, pal _, he can almost hear them say. The Floridian gives his friend a little nod, before turning again towards his wife, "Sure, hon."_

 _"I hope you get well super soon, Lee," Clementine says, warmly waving at the man in the bed, before starting to follow Kenny outside._

 _"See you later, sweet pea."_

* * *

"... L-Lee?"

Clementine feels really dizzy. Her head spins and she can't swallow properly because her mouth feels as dry as a scorching desert; when she tries to open her eyes, she starts to feel even more sick and stops immediately, keeping them shut. Her right side burns, but less than it did before, and as she moves a hand to reach for it, her fingers find the rough texture of bandages.

She gasps, slightly surprised.

Was she badly hurt?

She can't remember very well. She thought she was still at the motor's inn, back with Lee, Katjaa... wait, where's...?

* * *

 _"Alright, Clementine," Kenny stops as soon as they're out of Lee's room and the girl can see both of his eyes stare kindly at her, "I need to be on watch this mornin', why don't we go see what Duck's doin' so you can play with him?"_

 _"Mmh, I saw him drawing with Ben near the stairs," she says, not looking particularly enthusiastic._

 _Kenny thinks about it for a moment. "I thought you liked to draw," he comments._

 _"Yes, but for some reason they always make fun of my drawings," she explains, her brow furrowed in a perplexed expression that makes Kenny to chuckle a bit. Clementine slightly raises an eyebrow. "You think so too, right?" she asks in her tiny voice._

 _"Huh?" Kenny stops immediately. "Oh, no, hon, nothin' like that… Actually, I never saw any of yer drawings," he explains, scratching the back of his head. "Wanna show me while I keep watch on the motor's inn?" he adds, hoping to light her up again._

 _Her big golden eyes become once again bright in a matter of seconds. "Of course," she enthusiastically says, before she runs towards the place where they were all scattered over. "See?" she says, after she's done collecting the papers, "I got most of them."_

 _"Well, you surely draw a lot, little lady," he says, smiling down at her, before they start walking towards the center of what had become their base. "You ready?" he then asks, once they're in front of the camp trailer's ladder. "Here you go, Clem." He gently lifts her up, so she can easily reach the top of the RV by climbing the last few steps. "Now, careful with yer feet."_

 _"Okey dokey," she answers, while her eyes are caught in amazement by the sight before them. She's never been on the top of the camper. "What would you like to see first?" she then asks, once they're both settled._

 _"Anythin' will do, hon, it's your choice, really," he answers politely, while letting his gaze fall on Duck and Ben in order to check on his son, before taking a look at the woods on the other side of the road._

 _"Okay… here," she hands him her entire collection, "I can't really choose, so I'll show you all of them."_

 _Kenny takes it and lets his eyes scan from smiling cats to sunny landscapes and kids in school. "They're very pretty, Clem," he smiles down to her, looking impressed, while observing some of her last drawings. "I like this one in particular… this one with the airplane, y'see?"_

 _Clementine looks at the paper, then back at him, almost scandalized. "That's not an airplane, it's an_ eagle _, Kenny!"_

 _He chuckles at her adorable expression of shock. "I'm just kiddin', darlin'," he reassures her, "sorry, I couldn't resist." He playfully taps on her hat's edge as the child arches a brow, before handing the papers back to her, "thanks for showing me. Now, why don't you draw somethin' new to show Lee once we go visit him, huh? I'm sure he'll love it," he says encouragingly, before eyeing their surroundings once again._

 _"Okay," she says, starting to think about what she could draw next. She looks around her to find something inspiring, until her eyes set on Kenny's face and – in particular – on his mustache. She's always find it kinda funny and she tries to stifle a laugh, as she makes up her mind on how to repay Kenny for his previous joke._

 _"Found somethin' amusing, darlin'?" he asks, while he's too absorbed in his watch duty to notice what made her chuckle._

 _"Uhm… maybe," Clementine smiles evasively, trying not to burst out laughing. "It's about my next drawing."_

 _"Can't wait to see it, then," he says, totally oblivious to her devilish plan._

 _She smiles even more on the inside. "Yes... it'll be a surprise, though," she remarks, catching his attention with a suddenly serious note in her voice. "So no peeking."_

 _Kenny crosses his fingers on his chest, while assuming an expression as solemn as hers. "No peekin'," he swears._

 _"Good," she nods, before starting her newest artwork, as a cute frown of concentration appears on her young traits._

* * *

"... Kenny?" she mumbles softly, regaining conscience for a second time.

There are some movements around her, someone gets up, someone else comes over; voices, however, are too confused for her to discern who's speaking, and she's soon welcomed by darkness once again, as she slowly doze off into the unknown.

* * *

"It's been almost two days. He can't keep goin' on like this."

"I know, I tried to talk to him, but… he just won't listen." Sarita appears visibly tired, while her eyes briefly glance at Kenny, who has been sitting beside Clementine since she has started asking for him after Bonnie and Jane had finished their work on her. "He… he won't even tell me what exactly happened in that forest."

"Is she goin' to wake up?" Mike asks, with a glimmer of hope in his voice. "She spoke early this morning..."

"I don't know," Bonnie sighs, shaking her head a bit. Worry's written all over her face. "Jane and I did everything we could for her, I think it's a bit early to say... and by the way, I'm not really _that_ experienced with this kind of stuff. Where is she now?"

"Said she was gonna scavenge for other supplies... her last catch was pretty useful, huh?" says Luke, looking impressed. "She may have saved Clem's life..."

"Did she tell where did she find that stuff?" Rebecca asks, her voice mixed at the same time with suspect and curiosity. "It could become helpful when the baby will come."

Luke hesitates. "She... she said she found an abandoned bag at the Observation Deck, it was just laying there in a dump."

"What?"

"Well, it doesn't really matter that much now. I hope she's coming anytime now from her hike, we should soon check on Clementine..."

"Good luck with that," Luke sighs in annoyance, sparing a glance towards Kenny, who's still sitting beside Clementine, "he's not letting anyone to come near. Damn," he then grasps tightly his knee as a look of frustration crosses his face. "The hell was he thinking? Bringing her to hunt-"

"Luke, stop." To everyone's surprise, Rebecca continues. "Kenny and I may have different views on about everything, and I know that our take on how to raise a child in this kind of world would differ, too, but this doesn't mean that I can't understand what he's going through right now." She glances sympathetically at Sarita, who silently thanks her with a little smile. "Judging him won't help his fragile state of mind, nor Clementine. I know he has already lost a son once. No one should ever go through such an atrocious pain… it could kill him this time."

"No, she's going to be okay… I can't even think about-"

"I know, Sarita. But we should be prepared to face anything, while we hope for Clementine to feel better."

* * *

Kenny is staring absently at the motionless child who's resting under two piles of tattered covers - the only thing they could find in that goddamn museum to keep her warm. He moves a hand to adjust them a little better around the kid's frame, and his fingers brush against Clementine's messy hair as he frees her head from his hat to make her feel more comfortable. His mind races back to the forest, remembering the happy moments they had shared before everything fell apart. He can still see her cheerful smile, her eyes shining with awe as they track the wounded beast down, and then... everything turns into a horrible nightmare, a shot is heard and Clementine falls into his arms without a sound.

He watches as she mumbles something incomprehensible for him to understand; sometimes he speaks to her, even though he knows she can't hear him, while other times he just sits there, staring at her with his eyes vacant and distant, trying to remember those happy times back at the motor's inn, when all the shit had just started and he was a way better man than now. Damn, he would give anything to be in her place... if only he had been able to take that fuckin' bullet for her, Clem would have been safe right now and he, well...

His thoughts are suddenly interrupted by a movement on his left; he doesn't need to glance up to know that it's that girl - Sarah, who's mumbling something, like a mantra she's using to reassure herself. He remembers Clementine telling him how she had to force her friend to wake from her catatonic state by slapping her across the face, in order to save her life. He knew Clem did feel guilty about it, even though she hadn't mention that to him; if only she could see her friend now trying to fight her mental disorder just to stay close to her. She was even risking to receive the same awful treatment he gave the others for trying to go near Clem and him... but it's more likely that the girl doesn't even realize she's the only person he's letting to be this close right now without yelling to stay the fuck away from them.

Sarah's breath accelerates and her eyes widen a bit. She seems to be fighting the urge of just running away and hide someplace safe where she can sit and hug herself. "M-my Dad c-can save her... I know he can," she stutters, after a few intakes of breath. "H-he'll be b-back s-soon... so he c-can help her."

 _Poor kid,_ Kenny's hold on Clementine's hand intensifies a bit as he tries to find the strength to let some kind of positive thinking in his mind, trying his best to believe them himself. _Losing her father like that._ He also does his best not to lash out at Sarah for his frustrations.

"She's gonna make it. Clem's strong, she's always been..." it almost surprises him that he's able to have a civil conversation with someone in the state of mind he is right now.

"I know," the girl answers, and he can tell the others are holding their breath in surprise. Sarah seems a bit more comfortable than before, probably because he didn't care to correct her about her dad, "s-she's the one w-who t-taught me how to use a g-gun."

Kenny smiles warily, his eyes never leaving Clementine's face. "Yeah... seems just like somethin' my Clem would do." As soon as he finishes to speak, the eleven year old starts to cough. He pats her arm in a comforting way, supporting her head until the attack doesn't stop, so she can't hurt herself in the process. "It's okay, darlin'... I'm right here..." he whispers, as the girl's breath slowly calms down.

"She's lucky to have you."

Kenny remains silent, as he feels Sarah turning away from the two of them and make her way towards an isolated corner. The girl has pronounced those words almost without hesitation... without any tremble in her usually quivering voice. As if they were a matter of fact, as if she knew exactly what Clementine needed.

And even if he isn't too sure about that statement anymore, he finds it surprising enough that among all people in that bloody museum, the only one actually able to give him a glimmer of hope back has been the most broken of them all.

"You're gonna heal just fine, Clem," he whispers, eyeing Clementine's expression, which appears to be a bit more relaxed than before. "I know you will."

* * *

 _To be continued..._


	4. Chapter 4

Bonnie sighs as she lets her gaze wander around the museum hall in disgrace they've been bunkering in for more than a week. Taking a break from roaming around after escaping Carver's camp has been helpful in letting everyone rest... well, at least some of them. Supplies, though, are becoming sparser with each passing day; the only thing to keep them going is Jane's continuous excursions in the nearby area. She seems to always be able to find something useful to bring back, and no one, honestly, knows how she manages that. The redhead woman is sure about one thing, though: soon, there will be no more places to scavenge and they would be forced to move on towards North, where the climate would add up to the list of dangerous things they're supposed to deal with.

She sighs again, before getting on her feet with a bunch of meds in her hands. She can only hope Clementine would be feeling better soon and that Rebecca's baby could come before they left their shelter. She makes her way towards the cot where the eleven year old is lying, her heart heavy at the thought of facing Kenny's bad temper once again.

Once she's behind him, she takes a deep breath before speaking up. "Uhm... Kenny?" He doesn't move in the slightest, and she clears her throat a bit. "I was wandering... why don't you take a break while I tend to Clem? You need to eat and rest... and I guess I could check on your eye as well-"

"You think I give a shit about that, right now?" he cuts her off, without sparing her a glance. "Just make sure my girl's fine. Whatever you're gonna do, you can do it with me here," he finally looks up at her, and Bonnie can see a firm light in his tired brown eyes. She knows there would be no point in arguing with him.

"Fine," she answers, defeated, before she starts to remove Clem's bandages from her side. Her wound looks a bit less swollen than the day before, she notices as she proceeds to disinfect again the area; she carefully cleans the red streaks extending from the hole on the front, and then moves the girl to do same on her back, where the injure is smaller. Kenny helps her in supporting Clementine as Bonnie puts fresh bandages around her waist; then, the woman touches her forehead, checking the child's temperature. "It seems the fever isn't as high as before... here," she holds out a bottle of pills, "Jane gave me these, they might help dealing with the pain-"

"She doesn't need that shit," he says, firmly. "You really think that Jane girl is trustful? Who fuckin' knows where is she taking this stuff from... And if you haven't noticed, Clem's gonna wake up soon," he adds, his voice softening a bit as his eye falls once again on the child, "I heard her talking again this morning... she asked for Lee," he smiles faintly. "It's been almost four days, any moment now-"

"Kenny," she says very gently, trying her best not to anger him; hope's clearly visible in his dark-circled eyes and in his husky voice, and Bonnie feels bad for trying to make him reason, "we don't know that for sure. She lost a lot of blood and she may have hallucinations from the painkillers we gave her-"

"I don't wanna hear any of yer bullshit," he snaps at her, his voice suddenly rough and dangerous, "I don't even know what the fuck you're trying to say, it's not like you're a goddamn nurse or somethin'!"

Bonnie is taken aback by his tone. "Can... can we just have a civil discussion outside?" she asks, getting up.

"I'm not leaving her side. And what's up with _discussing?_ " His voice raises at each words he spits out, just as his feet from the spot in which he's been for half a week. "All I know is that you - _everyone_ in this goddamn museum - has already given up on Clem-"

"Stop this madness, Kenny," Bonnie sighs in frustration, glancing worriedly at the others while she tries to hush him; he has alerted everyone with his yelling, but still, he doesn't seem to care. "I know how you feel-"

" _You don't_ _ **fucking know shit!**_ Y'hear me?!" His eye glares hard into her skull and his face is twisted in a sorrowful grimace. For a moment Bonnie is _truly_ scared. "You don't have the _fucking_ , _slightest_ idea how I-"

"K-Kenny... w-would you s-stop... y-yelling...?"

" _The hell I will-_ " A tiny movement to his right and a faint voice finally catch his attention. He looks down and his eye gradually widens. "... C-Clementine?"

The eleven year old manages to barely open her amber eyes in order to stare into the good one of her loud protector. As the fog slowly thins out, she can see Kenny's eye becoming damper every seconds that passes, and she doesn't really understand what's happening around her. "W-why... a-are you crying...?"

"I-I..." He's unable to choke back a sob as he kneels again beside her. "... I'm just... so damn happy to see ya, child..." He reaches for her pale cheek to gently stroke it with his thumb, both to comfort her and make sure she's real.

"... h-happy to see y-you... too..." Clementine mumbles, still looking very sleepy and confused. She leans in his touch, relaxing at the feeling of safety that his closeness provides.

"How do you feel, Clementine?" Bonnie asks, still worried about her conditions.

"... my head... hurts a bit... and my side too..."

"It's alright, darlin'," Kenny whispers, soothingly, "no need to speak if you don't feel to... damn, I am so sorry I startled ya..."

"... don't worry..." she says, drowsy. She fights the urge to drift off to sleep again and, instead, she lets out a slight giggle, as if she's suddenly remembering something. "... we should go get Lee, Kenny... he needs to see what I just drew..."

Kenny hears Bonnie mumbling something about the painkiller's side-effects, and he smiles quietly at Clementine, while the fondness in his eye intensifies. "I'm sure as hell he's gonna love it, hon," he says, wiping away a tear from his own cheek with casualness.

The child returns his smile, contently, before a little yawn escapes her lips. "... will you be okay... if I sleep some more...?" she asks, already dozing off. Her voice is filled with care: seeing Kenny crying is never a good thing.

"Of course, darlin'... try to get some rest." He brushes off a curly lock of hair from her forehead. "I'll be right here when you wake up," he speaks softly in her ear, as he places a small kiss on her temple. He waits until he feels her breath becoming regular, before turning to look up at Bonnie. "I told ya. She's a tough kid, she can do this."

"We're still not sure if-"

"I said she **can** do this," Kenny remarks, firm, though - this time, he's careful not to wake the girl up.

"Fine," Bonnie sighs, lifting her hands up in defeat and ignoring his tone, "have it your way. Jesus, this man is stubborn," she mutters as she gets up with a slight shake of her head. "Let me know if she wakes up again... and you should probably make her eat something soon."

Kenny barely nods, as he seems to be focusing again on Clementine only. Bonnie allows a little smile to play on her lips as she watches the caring expression on the man's face one more time before moving away; that little girl has the power to melt the heart of that hotheaded jerk like butter.

* * *

"Hey, kid."

Clementine blinks several times, trying to get her sight clear. Luke's face comes into view and she sees him taking place beside her, in the same spot Kenny has just emptied. He said he's going to bring her something to eat since it's been two days from her awakening already and she hasn't had any food for almost six days. Bonnie told them it has been for the best: no one should eat nor drink after being shot at.

The girl still can't believe what has happened to her. Sometimes, she thinks she's still asleep and that waking up would bring her back into the forest with Kenny, as if nothing ever happened. The only thing that helps her realize this is no dream is the pain she feels in her side every time she tries to get up from her cot. She hates to be immobilized to bed like that.

"Hey, Luke," she forces a little smile even though she feels a bit nauseous; the thought of having to eat something isn't so appealing anymore.

"I'm glad you woke up," the man says, returning her smile just for a few seconds, though. Clementine can see his face gradually growing sad. "Damn... you really scared the hell outta us, Clem," he adds, noticing a questioning light in her tired eyes.

"Sorry," she says softly, averting her eyes from him. She surely didn't ask for this.

Luke regrets it immediately. "Hey, Clem, I didn't mean- shit, it wasn't your fault, okay?" Damn, he felt so stupid. Silence falls awkwardly on them, until Luke suddenly remembers something. "Oh, I almost forgot," he reaches behind with his hand, and Clementine is amazed to see her baseball cap. "I found your hat," he smiles eying her joyful expression as he hands it to her, "I was lucky to find it nearby the arches, amid the tall grass... I'm sorry it's a bit ruined and all, but y'know, it rained so-"

"You really found it," she whispers, her smile growing larger on her pale face as she takes hold of it, "thanks, Luke," she says, grateful.

"Anytime, Clem," he replies, watching as she places the worn out hat on her head. He extends his hand wrapped in the form of a fist in order for her to return the gesture.

Clementine slowly lifts her hand in the same way as him and slightly bumps her knuckles against his, keeping a smile on her face. It felt so good to have her hat back on the top of her head; as long as it would fit in, she would wear it, no matter how torn it would get.

Just a few meters away from where the two are sitting, Kenny is searching through the stuff Bonnie has left for everyone to share; what he needs is a knife to open the canned food he's going to feed Clem with. His ears catch parts of the conversation the girl's having with Luke and he can't help but smile a bit as he hears her voice ringing in amazement as soon as she receives her lost hat back, despite she's still weak. Gosh, he feels so relieved she's showing the first signs of recovery that he doesn't mind the fact that it's the annoying farm boy the one who's keeping her company. Jesus, that kid was a real pain in the ass most of the times, but if had managed to find her hat and even made her smile, then - _maybe_ , he wasn't a complete shitbird, after all.

 _Holy shit, you're gettin' real soft now ol' man..._ Kenny shakes away that thought with a low chuckle, as his eye finally sets on the pocket knife he's been searching for until now. _Jackpot_. He gets up, finally ready to bring the small plastic bowl with the food to Clem, but something stops him.

"Kenny, I need to talk to you for a moment."

It's Mike, who's regarding him with a serious note in his voice.

Kenny frowns. "What's the matter, Mike?" he inquires, impatiently. "Can't y'see I need to feed Clem right now?"

"I see that, but this is important, too," the other man insists, before lowering his voice so only Kenny could hear him. "I think I might have... _overheard_ something I wasn't supposed to. While I was guarding the perimeter this morning, I caught Jane telling Luke how she procured all that stuff... man, she's been _stealing_ those supplies! We can't do that, it's just wrong..." Kenny goes suddenly still and Mike stops talking for a second, arching an eyebrow, "... hey, are you alright, man?"

Something's just clicked in Kenny's head.

The voices of the men chasing after him keep replaying in his mind, and for a moment he's back in the woods, running through the brush with a wounded Clementine in his arms, the sweat on his face, her blood on his hands...

 _"They may be with those robbers! Don't let 'em escape!"_

"Did she say since when she's started doin' this?" he suddenly growls, snapping out of the flashback. His voice is shaking already with growing anger.

"I... I think she said just a few days after we arrived here- Kenny? Hey! Where are you goin'...?"

But Kenny doesn't listen anymore, as he makes his way towards the only person in the museum he could blame at the moment, since God only knows where that fuckin' _Jane_ is right now.

 _Seems like I wasn't wrong about ya, shitbird._

* * *

 _To be continued..._


	5. Chapter 5

Clementine catches sight of Kenny walking towards Luke and her; she smiles, in order to greet him, but her happiness vanishes as soon as she sees the grim expression imprinted on his face. He's literally _boiling_ with rage.

"Kenny, what's happening...?"

The man doesn't seem to hear her voice, his uncovered eye fully focused on Luke. "You. With me. _Now_ ," he spits out, stressing every word with anger. The younger man turns his head towards him and arches a brow, but he doesn't have the time to make a sound as he's instantly yanked off the ground with force.

" _Hey!_ " Luke protests in surprise, trying to free himself from his death-grip. "What the hell, man? Get your hands off me!"

"Shut the fuck up and move, asshole," Kenny snarls, releasing Luke's orange shirt only to shove him across the hall, towards the exit. "We gotta lots of things to _talk_ 'bout..."

"Kenny," Sarita's voice is filled with fear as she makes her way towards them, attracted by the commotion just like the others', "why are you doing this...?"

"Stay with Clem for a few minutes, hon," her lover cuts short as soon as she speaks up, "I need to have a little chat with this fucker 'ere."

"I said get _off_ me," Luke says again, seeing Kenny advancing menacingly for a second time towards him, and this time he sounds angrier, as if he was considering the idea to fight back.

"Kenny, what the fuck is wrong with you?" Mike tries to intervene, interposing between them.

Kenny completely ignores him, trying to get past the other man so he could easily grab Luke again and drag him out of the museum. "Where's your _girlfriend_ , huh, turd? Did she run off again to rob some other shithead who'd come to kill us all soon after _?_ "

"What the hell are you talking about?" Nick emerges from the entrance, his watch turn clearly over, as he first spares a glance at Luke and then at Kenny.

"What, your _friend_ , here, didn't tell ya?" Kenny growls towards him, without caring to shift his eye on him, as he keeps glaring hard at Luke.

"Kenny, please... you're scaring the girls..."

"Do you know what this fucker did?!"

"I didn't do shit! Jane only told me this morning about the stuff _she_ stole-"

"She did _what?_ "

"Whatever they did, this isn't the way we do stuff, man," Mike struggles in order to prevent Kenny from jumping on Luke. He clearly seems to regret his decision to tell Kenny, of all people, what he has found out.

"Both of 'em are the fuckin' reason Clem's being shot by those psychos!" Clementine flinches as her name is being dragged into the argument, while she observes Kenny acting beyond himself. Suddenly, a flashback of that one night in Crawford comes to her mind and she recalls the only time she can remember seeing him like this: after they had learned about the deal Ben had made with the bandits out of the motor's inn, he almost jumped on the kid for causing his family's death.

She needed to stop him, and soon.

She knows that's what Lee would have done, as his friend.

"I told you, I didn't stole from them! And by the way, Jane's stuff helped her recovering, since Bonnie's wasn't enough! If Clem hadn't tak-"

"She wouldn't have been shot in the first place, you _motherf-!_ "

" _Kenny!_ " she yells as she finally manages to get into a sitting position, and she's almost surprised this works, actually.

The bearded man turns his head towards her, snapping out of his anger just for enough time to focus on her weakened frame, trembling on her small cot for the effort. "Please, just... just stop it," she adds, trying to repress a painful grimace caused by her wound.

Kenny's gaze visibly softens as he notices the pain she's in. "Clem," he mouths, regret clearly palpable in his voice, "shit, I'm sorry about that, darlin'." He moves into her direction, freeing himself from Mike's hold, but he's soon anticipated by Bonnie.

"Fuck, her wound may have reopened," the woman states while she crouches beside the girl to start checking on her.

"Goddammit," Kenny clenches his hands into fists, as he tries to calm himself down even though the only thing he'd be glad to do at the moment is to smash every piece of art still intact in that fucking museum. Maybe even punching some face in, would be really nice, right now. A thought crosses his mind, and he suddenly knows what to do.

"I suggest you go out to breathe some fresh air, Kenny," Rebecca tries to suppress the edginess in her voice as he watches the grizzled man, who's still standing in the middle of the hall.

"What? So he can go murdering Jane as soon as he sees her?" Luke reproaches her idea, not moving from his spot either.

Kenny ignores both of them with a groan, as he makes his way towards Clementine, his eye never leaving her frame. "Is she going to be okay?" he sharply asks Bonnie, who's still tending to the girl.

"Yeah, fortunately the medication is still intact. She just needs to watch her movements from now on, alright, city mouse?"

"Okay," Clementine pulls her eyelids open to look at Kenny. Part of her wants to stay sulky at him for acting like a jerk to everyone in the room, but the other half constantly reminds her he just worries about her well-being. "I'm fine," she says, trying to reassure him, without really knowing how to start a conversation with the man after the show he had thrown.

Kenny nods a bit, before sighing as he rubs his one good eye. "Doesn't change it's _their_ fuckin' fault if you got a goddamn bullet through you."

"Kenny, it doesn't matter anymore." Clementine can feel the tiredness in his voice and she can't help but feel partly responsible for this: she has learned from Luke that Kenny hadn't moved from his spot beside her for all the time she's been out. Her gaze softens at his weary features, but just before she can voice her concern for him, the man speaks first.

"Will you be alright if I go out for a bit? I need to do something," Kenny says, and Clem can tell he's torn between staying and going. "I'll ask Sarita to help you to eat and be with you... just stay put until I'm back, okay?"

"Y-yeah, okay," Clementine didn't expected he'd make up his mind so soon after an outburst like the one he's just had. "It's not like I can go anywhere," she jokes, trying to light up the tense mood which fills the room.

Kenny smiles a bit, but the girl can sense his calmness it's just a facade put on for her sake. "I'll be right back, darlin'," he assures her, patting her hand.

Before he can rise to his feet, though, Clementine stops him, pulling slightly at his hand. She has an awful feeling about this. "Kenny, just... promise me you won't do anything dangerous." _Or stupid_ , she mentally adds, carefully refraining herself from saying it out loud.

She can't decipher the light which glints in his eye for just a bare instant. "I promise," he tells her after a few seconds, giving her hand a gentle squeeze before walking away.

And as she feels his fingers slipping off hers, she simply knows he's lying.

 _He's never been good at it._

* * *

Jane is walking her way back to the museum when she sees Kenny's frame emerge from the front doors and briskly proceed towards her. She arches a brow, wondering what the hell was going on with him now, and she's too stunned to react as he grabs her arm and drags her behind one of the monuments which adorn Parker's Run.

"You got one second to let go of my arm, you sick asshole," she hisses, struggling against his hold.

"Oh, yeah? So nice coming from you, little _Robin Hood in training_ ," he releases her, enjoying the brief flash of surprise that comes across her face. "Right, 'cause I know what you did," he spits out, disgusted, "and I'd be real glad to give ya a taste of what Clementine's been through because of ya, if I didn't need your... _collaboration_."

"And why on earth should I help you?"

"I just need to know where the fuckers you've been stolen from are hiding their sorry asses," Kenny growls dangerously, taking out his gun and waving it in the direction of the woods, "it's the least you can do for Clementine," he adds, noticing the girl's name suddenly silences any protests, "and besides... it's not like you have much choice."

"Oooh, I'm so scared of you right now," Jane mocks him, "the one-eyed warrior, here, wants to go _Rambo_ on a bunch of shithead bandits, that's _sooo_ badass." She drops the irony to start regarding him with a more serious light in her eyes. "Why would you do something _this_ stupid, even for you?"

"I got nothin' to explain to someone like you," he drily replies, "it's not like you'd understand something 'bout protecting your family. Now, shut the fuck up and start _moving._ "

Jane feigns his words don't have any effect on her. "Oh, I see your _big plan_ now," she continues, as they walk away from the centre of the Civil War site and into the forest, "you think those assholes might come after us and be a danger to your loved ones?" _At least, he's gonna be a good distraction for those idiots, in case they'd decide to track this place down._

"Just show me the damn way," Kenny growls, and he finds himself relieved when the woman just lifts her shoulder in a shrug and starts leading in silence. _Jesus_ , only a few minutes have passed since he's with her and he can't stand her already.

"And by the way," Jane resume her talking, much to his irritation, "I'm not helping you in your murdering habits, I'm just taking you to the place and then I'm walking off..."

" _Fine_ ," he barks, almost losing his patience, "I couldn't ask for fuckin' more."

He just hopes it won't take too long to find those bastards before he unleashes his frustrations on someone else.

* * *

"You sure you don't want to finish your meal, Clem...?"

"It's okay, Sarita, I'm not that hungry anymore." Clementine shoots another glance at the entrance doors of the museum, wondering how much time has passed since she saw Kenny walking out of it. It seems like an eternity.

"As you wish, honey," she hears Sarita say, and she can feel she's just as worried as her. They sit in silence for some time, before the woman offers the child one of her kind smiles. "I'm sure he won't stay away too long, you know."

Clementine returns it, appreciating what she's trying to accomplish. "Yeah, he said he would be back soon," she agrees, nodding slightly as she tries to make some space for the same hope Sarita is sharing with her.

"I... I actually wanted to thank you, Clem," the woman says, after a while, surprising her, "for what you do for Kenny. You've been helping him out a lot with your presence, I know that... Even when the others seem to lose faith in him, you always manage to see past his bad temper."

"You too," Clementine says, almost immediately, "you've been helping him out the most since you two met... you're kind, loving, and I know that Kenny-"

"He loves you very much, you know?" Sarita gently interrupts her, before she could go on. Clementine clearly isn't aware of the issues she and Kenny have been through for quite some time now, and Sarita doesn't want to be reminded of the fact that he still doesn't let her to be close to him, as if he was afraid she might get herself burned by being around a man like him.

Clementine looks sad, sensing there's something hurting the other woman; she glances down, before whispering, "I do too... we take care of each other. We always do."

"And he's so proud of you," Sarita caresses her cheek with her only hand, her voice soft, "never forget that, whatever happens. He needs you now more than ever… I fear that I might not be what he thought I was."

"That's not true," Clementine is sure of herself as she speaks, managing to effectively surprise Sarita. "You can't give up on him already. I know he's difficult to deal with, sometimes… maybe _more_ than some, but he's kind, and he loves you too. I don't know if he could handle to be left… again."

Sarita looks into her amber eyes and finds them shining with determination and sincerity; she finds herself smiling tenderly at her. That little girl surely was far more mature and wiser than any of the grown-ups in their group.

* * *

"Is that it?" Kenny whispers as he and Jane stay crouched, hiding among the brush, while their gazes remain fixed on the camp in front of them. "Where the fuck is everyone?"

"Looks like they took off."

Kenny shoots her a glare. "You kiddin' me, right? Did ya see those tents? Why would they leave stuff like that here, if they weren't coming back?"

Jane arches an eyebrow, regarding him as if he was an idiot. "You seriously think I have all the answers to your stupid questions?" she retorts. "I never said they weren't coming back- wait a second," she suddenly cuts herself off, hearing some noises coming from the camp in the glare.

"What?" Kenny asks immediately. "What is it?"

" _Just stay quiet!_ " she hisses, and soon after that, they can both hear the same sounds becoming a bit louder than before.

A man with a goatee and a black bandana around his head emerges from one of the tents, his entire body stretching as if he's just woken up. He looks around himself for a few seconds, completely unaware of the two people who were carefully watching him, before he lets out a curse.

"Those sons of bitches seriously left me here...? Jesus, I hope they find walkers in that fucking museum," he lets out a deep laugh, before he goes searching through some bags. "Well, time to get wasted with what's left, then..."

Kenny's froze in his spot, as his mind is unable to properly formulate thoughts, apart from two words.

 _Sarita..._

 _... Clementine._

"Shit, we need to go back... _now!_ " Jane urges beside him, and this is the first time he finds himself agreeing with her.

They turn, careful not to draw the man's attention on them, before they start running towards their shelter.

"How the hell did they get past us without being seen?" Kenny's voice cracks up once he finds it again, emotion resounding in every sharp breaths he takes while they try to cover as much ground as possible.

"They must have walked around, taking the longest path just to reach the place from behind."

 _Fuck, fuck, fuck, FUCK._

He screams internally, as he damns himself for not staying back at the museum.

He had wanted to take out those bastards before they could find their refuge and get their stuff back alongside with revenge... before they could harm Clementine and Sarita.

He had wanted to be sure to protect his family just _one_ fuckin' time in his life and being able to finally make up for his past failures.

But now, history was repeating itself, as the frail castle of glass in which he's been locking his sanity for two years, threatens to break apart all at once into millions of small shards.

* * *

 _To be continued..._


	6. Chapter 6

Clementine wakes up to a quick succession of loud noises. She had drift off into a tormented slumber just after talking to Sarita, her body finally giving in to tiredness, while her mind kept worrying about Kenny's whereabouts.

 _What's going on now...?_

As she forces herself to pull her eyes open and adjust them to the dark which surrounds her, she feels two hands grasp her arms, startling her.

"Clem! _Clem,_ _wake up!_ " Rebecca's distressed face comes into her view, as she's abruptly brought back to reality. "We need to get out of here!"

Another series of gunshots are heard, and Clementine feels suddenly awake. "Where are the others?" she immediately asks, glancing around only to find Sarah's shaking frame just a few meters from them, her hands on her ears and her eyes tightly shut.

"Nick and Mike surprised some men hiding in the back, and the others went out to give them a hand," Rebecca rapidly explains, without even trying to suppress the panic in her voice. "Clem, we don't have time..."

"I need to go out and help-" Clem tries to get up, but she winces at the sharp pain in her side. Rebecca helps her up, supporting her by an arm. "... _dang it_."

"You're in no shape to fight, Clem, you can barely stand up," Rebecca urges, "come on, we must get out of here... Sarah, sweetie, get up..."

The fifteen year old shoots her a terrified look. Rebecca pleads her a second time and Clementine joins in her exhortations, but Sarah seems to truly jolt awake from her catatonic state only when a large window suddenly breaks down into pieces. The screams get louder, and the girl finally rises up, accepting Rebecca's hand.

"Come on, we just need to reach those doors and then-" her speech is cut off as soon as they stop in front of the main entrance. The doors burst open wide and two men come forward, weapons in their hands and a smug look on their ugly faces. "- _no!_ " Rebecca cries as Clementine is the first one to be yanked off her hold by a guy with an awful scar across his face, while the other man takes care of both the pregnant lady and the teenager, carefully aiming his gun at them.

"Hello, beautiful," the second man grins, pushing his hostages out of the building, "care to join our little party?"

"Hey, I recognize this one, Wayne," Clementine tries to refrain herself from shuddering as the scarred man brings his ugly face closer to hers in order to get a better view, "this is the little shit who was with that fucker in the woods... the one who shot Don."

"Shit, I thought Steve had got her for good..." the man called Wayne spares a glance at her, before shaking his head with an evil smirk, "we should have taken out that bastard first... if only this fuckin' kid hadn't got herself in the way..."

As they walk, Clementine looks around her, desperately searching for the frames of her companions in the dim light which surrounds Parker's Run. The ruins scattered all around the war site cast scary shadows on the ground thanks to the moonlight which shines among the clouds. Her eyes grow wide as soon as they see her friends - disarmed and surrounded by five strangers. A body lays on the ground, dead, and Clementine is at least relieved that it doesn't belong to any of her friends. She lets her gaze wander towards Nick, who's clutching at his side, then at Sarita and her bruised face; the others look pretty battered too, but other than that they seem to be mostly unharmed.

"Is that it?" A voice speaks near one of the statue. Clementine shifts her eyes on him, her sight meeting the frame of a burly man in a leather jacket; his hair are tied in a short, brownish ponytail and his face sports a beard, not as full as Kenny, though.

"I don't think so, boss," Wayne walked towards him with his companion at his side, "Greg, 'ere, says he remembers this one." He grasps the back of Clementine's jacket and shoves her towards his boss. "I think we're still missing the old fuck from the woods."

"Hmm," with a smirk playing on his lips, the bearded man, gets a hold on Clementine's arm, "what do y'say, kid? You wanna tell me where your friend is?"

" _Please_ , don't hurt her! She's just a little girl...!" Clementine hears Sarita begging, soon followed by the sound of a rifle's butt hitting the woman. She tries to pull away from the man's grasp and turn towards Sarita, but she can't as the bastard tightens his grip on her.

"There was no need for that!" Luke yells, horrified, only to receive the same treatment.

"Well, it doesn't really matter if you don't wanna tell me, sweetie. He may as well come here once we've finished with you and find such a _good_ surprise..." he smiles slyly, before turning towards the rest of his group without letting go of the girl. "Well, guys? What do you think? _Should we just kill these folks and take all their stuff?_ "

There's a moment of silence, only broken by the moans of the wounded and Sarah's sobs. Then, coming out of nowhere, a voice erupts in the dark and Clementine feels her body suddenly being shaken by some kind of electric charge - _there's still a chance._

" _Get your filthy hands off her!_ "

Everyone turns around, only to stare into the nothing for a few seconds, before two heads finally emerge from behind a monument. Clementine's eyes widen as she sees Kenny advancing with Jane in front of him, as if she was his hostage, and she can hear Mike's shocked voice muttering, ' _What the hell is he doing?_ '.

* * *

 _"I said don't move, asshole!"_

 _"Don't you fucking hurt him! Let him go, God dammit!"_

 _"That ain't gonna happen!"_

 _"DAAAD!"_

Kenny feels his bowel twist on itself at the sight of Clementine being held up at gunpoint, as he reminisces about the dread he experienced two years ago back at the St. John's Dairy Farm. His impulses urge him to lunge himself at the hideous bastard who's mistreating his girl, as fear and blind rage blend into a dangerous mix. He'd want nothing more than to rip that son of a bitch in half for laying just a bare finger on her, and the only things that hold him back from doing so are his death-grip on Jane's jacket and the memories of his past failures in handling hostages' situations.

 _"I'm tryin' to help!"_

 _"I'm sure Walter really appreciated your help."_

 _"Like you helped Alvin?"_

Their plan would work this time.

It has to.

Otherwise... he'll have someone else to rip in two after he's done with this fucker here.

"Hey there, _friend_ ," the bandit's boss turns to face Kenny, while his grip on Clementine remains strong, "I see you've finally decided to crawl out of your little hole... Name's Steve, by the way," he earns a general laugh from his companions. "So... what you got there, exactly?"

"This is the one who robbed you," Kenny snarls, ignoring the men's smirks while he advances until he finally stops a few meters away from the group, "so leave them the fuck out of this!" His eye lingers on Sarita's bruised frame writhing on the ground and then again on Clementine's painful expression as she struggles against the man; the grip on the gun he's pointing at Steve tightens dangerously.

"I don't think you're smart enough for this, man," Steve says, shaking his head slightly in a mocking way, "I mean, you're offering us your sexy _friend_ there, and that's perfectly fine," his lackeys exchange another set of grins at each other, but this time their expressions look a lot darker than before, "but why would I care anyway when we can still take out you, first, and then all of your stuff later?" He follows Kenny's gaze, who's still set on Clementine. "What a sweet little girl, huh?" Steve wonders, grinning with a half smile on his face, as the eleven year old regards him with hostility while still fighting against his hold. "Uh oh, the little one has got balls here," he looks around to see his men cracking up in hideous laughs, before turning again towards her. "Say girl, ya think you're pretty tough, right? Wanna impress the old man?"

Clementine's glare doesn't change while she keeps scuffling like a tiny tiger in order to free herself from her captor. Then, a jolt of pain in her side makes her suddenly still and she can feel her sight starting to go blurry. Her wound - probably reopened by all her struggling, hurts like hell as she falls on her knees, trying to catch her breath from the ache.

"I said don't fuckin' touch her, _ya piece a' shit!_ " she can hear Kenny roaring, as everything starts happening real fast- _too_ fast, for her to catch up with.

"Shut up, _Cyclops_ , no one's fucking talking to you," barks a man with a crossbow, before his voice explodes into a howl of pain that sends chills on everyone's spine: one of his dead comrades has just reanimated on the ground, taking a full chomp out of his calf.

As everyone is distracted by the screams, Jane and Kenny take their chances: the man lets her go and fires towards Steve, hitting his arm before launching himself at him, while the woman throws her knife in the direction of the closer man from her spot, wounding him before he could react; she then proceeds to disarm him rather quickly with a good placed kick on the side of his knee.

"Luke!" she calls, before throwing him a gun.

Clementine finds herself on the ground, her ears ringing because of the gunshots and several growls around her, not all of them human, though. "Shit, we've got walkers on us!" she hears someone warning as she spots the blurry frame of Sarita covering Rebecca and Sarah from behind a monument, while Mike and Bonnie deal with the rest of the bandits. Suddenly caught off guard, Clementine feels her left shoe being grabbed and she twirls around, gasping at the sight of an unexpected walker. The girl glances desperately around her, searching for any kind of weapon, as she hits the decaying hand still holding onto her with all the strength she can put in her left foot, until the pain in her side becomes too insufferable to stand and she cries for help.

" _Clementine!_ " Kenny distracts himself from the brawl with his opponent for just a second, as his eye leaves Steve's punched face to search for the girl's frame in the dark, but it's enough to cost him the upper hand in his fight. Just as a crunching sound signals Luke's boot meeting the walker's head which is trying to bite Clementine, one of the bandits shoots the one eyed man in the shoulder, making him grunt and fall under Steve's weight.

" _No!_ Luke, help him!" Clementine tries to get up and reach the two men wrestling on the ground, panic filling her voice as she sees Steve's hands dangerously closing around Kenny's neck.

Before Luke can do anything though, another shot is heard and soon after the bandits' boss collapses beside Kenny, fatally shot in the head. Nick lowers the rifle he's stolen from one of their opponents, before throwing himself on the ground in order to avoid a spray of gunfire. Luke helps Kenny up and the two of them plus Clementine rapidly take cover behind a low brick-wall.

Kenny's eye moves on the girl, scanning her frame feverishly as he searches for any wound. "You okay? Has it bit ya...?" he asks, and she can feel an edge of fear in his voice.

"N-no, I'm f-fine," she answers, though her head still spins a little. She hears him exhale, clearly relieved, before a groan escapes through his lips. "K-Kenny, your shoulder..." she whispers, as she helps him pressing on it in order to stop the bleeding. Thankfully it was only grazed, but it looks like it hurt.

"Nah, this ain't nothing but a scratch... I'm alright, darlin'," he reassures her, before glancing over the brick-wall and searching for Sarita's shape in the dark. Chaos is still reigning over Parker's Run, but he manages to meet her gaze for a few seconds at least. She's still fighting behind a cover against the four bandits left, keeping Rebecca and Sarah safe, but with the walkers approaching on her other side, he knows she's not gonna last long. Kenny curses under his breath. "Okay, listen now," he speaks quickly, turning to face Luke, "I'll cover you from here while you take Clem and get the hell outta this place, then I'll try to reach the other side and save the girls."

"What?" Luke and Clementine's eyes widen as they stare at him as if he's completely gone crazy.

"It's the only way, God dammit! Clem can barely stand on her own and I can't carry her around with my shoulder like this!"

Clementine shakes her head vigorously. "No, I'm not leaving you..."

"Clem," Kenny cuts her off, placing a hand on her shoulder, " _Clem_ , look at me, you gotta trust me on this, alright? I don't like it either, but this is how it's gonna be... I'll catch up with y'all, okay?" The child opens her mouth to protest again, but he silences her a second time, the tone in his voice literally _begging_ her to do as he asks. "Clem, _please_ , I gotta do this, hon, we don't have much time left."

"I- okay... okay, Kenny, just... be careful, please," his eye softens as he sees her finally nodding a bit.

"Good," he smiles at her with fondness, giving her shoulder a gentle squeeze, "that's my girl. Now, hurry..." he turns again towards Luke and smirks at him, "me and the others got this, take your asshole friend with ya and thank him for earlier."

"You better bring your ass at the Deck after you've done here, you old jerk," the younger man returns a slight grin as he tries to hide the worry in his voice for Clementine's sake. "I'm looking forward to our next little _chat_ , y'know," he adds, as the girl rolls her eyes a bit, her heart heavy with worry. _Are they seriously finding common ground in a time like this?_

"And you better keep her safe, ya hear me, boy?" Kenny casts a final glance at Clementine as she's picked up by Luke, before leaning out of his cover and starting to shoot with the gun Luke has handed him. "Go, _now!_ "

As Luke helps her move from cover to cover in order to avoid the enemies' fire, Clementine's eyes dart back at Kenny. The thought of losing him makes her feel sick in the stomache. She sees him shooting at the bandits until her and Luke are safe behind some ruins, before he hops the low brick-wall with a swift move and sprints towards Sarita.

"He's gonna be alright, Clem," Luke briefly glances down at her, just as they reach another broken monument to shelter themselves, "we're all gonna be alright once this is over-"

"Luke, leave me here."

"- _what?_ Jesus, Clem, are you kidding?"

"I said I wouldn't leave him, so just drop me here," Clementine repeats, grimacing as a pang of pain stings in her side, "I need to help them, Luke," she insists, pointing at Sarita, Rebecca and Sarah, who were almost surrounded by walkers on their right side.

"Damn it, Clem, I can't! Kenny will have my head if anything happens to you... and I don't want it either," he keeps running, ignoring her small fists trying to break free from his hold, "Clem, would you stop it, please? You really are taking after his stubbornness, you know that right-?"

A sudden yelp not too far from them interrupts his speech and they turn around. Luke's eyes lock with Nick's for a moment, before they assist helplessly as a walker tries to sink its teeth into the ball capped man's thigh.

 _No, no, no, no... not again, please_... Clementine can almost feel the time freeze as she sees the scene playing out before her.

"Nick!" Luke rushes towards him, almost dragging Clementine with him. _If only I still had a gun..._ As he dashes towards his friend, he stumbles and his eyes watch in horror the moment the walker's rotting mouth closes around Nick's flesh. Luke's lips move to form a scream, but not a single sound escapes from his throat.

Clementine's heart sinks as she prepares herself to see another one of her friends succumbing to the dead. Before the walker can finish his job, and give another chomp at the wounded man, though, Jane's knife pierces through its skull, finally ending him.

"Shit... I'm dead, man... I'm so dead..." Nick slurs as soon as they approach him.

"Shut the fuck up, Nick, you're not! We... we'll find something!" Luke tries to keep his voice in check, with little success as panic resounds through it. "Come on, we have to get you out of here... Jane, help me with Clem, I'll help Nick."

Clementine gives the bitten man a worried look, even though she's finding more and more difficult to keep her eyes opened and her sight clear, before the sound of gunfire in the distance makes her cringe. "W-what about the others...?" she falters, her legs giving in once again from the tiredness and the pain which spreads from her side wound.

"We can't help them now, Clem," Jane's voice echoes through her ears very close - yet so distant, as she feels herself being picked up once again against her will.

"N-no..." Clementine tries to protest, but soon everything starts to spin, and darkness comes engulfing her weakened frame.

* * *

 _To be continued..._


	7. Chapter 7

Kenny moves around the camp, positioning himself closer to the point where Sarita and the others are almost succumbing to the enemies. He waits until he sees one of the bandits leave his cover in order to make a move on the girls, and fires just in time to hit him in the neck.

Rebecca notices they're being rescued and tries to see from her position how many bandits there are left. She turns to look at Sarita and sees she's not doing well, handling a gun with only her right hand makes the task of aiming right all the more difficult.

"Kenny, watch out behind you!"

Hearing her warning, Kenny quickly turns to face one of Steve's men sneaking up on him and briefly struggles with him to gain the upper hand. Sarita sees he's in trouble and manages to fire close enough to the enemy's face, distracting him and letting her boyfriend gain advantage.

"Sarita, walkers! We have to go!" Rebecca's alarmed voice snaps her out of it.

"They're too many, make a run for it!" They hear Kenny yelling, from a few meters, just as he punches the bandit from before, the one without bullets. "I'll cover you!" He focuses on the last two raiders left, trying to ignore the pain in his left shoulder and Sarita's hesitant movement, as he yells in the direction of their enemies: " _Hey!_ You fuckin' bastards, _come and get_ _some!_ "

Rebecca tries to get up, but she's soon forced once again on the ground. "Oh God, no, no, no. _Ngh!_ "

"What's wrong, Becca?" Sarita turns only to see her crouching, a painful grimace on her face.

"I... I think it's the baby," they only manage to exchange a look of fear, before Sarah starts to break down into a panic attack.

"W-wal... w-walkers!" she screams, as if she's just realized how much closer the undead are now. She puts her hands on her eyes and rises to her feet, but - as she seems to prepare herself to run away - Sarita grabs her just in time.

"Sarah, honey, you gotta stay with us," the Indian woman tries to calm her down, keeping her still with her only hand around her mid, before one lonely walker could take hold of her. Sarita shoots it in the head, making it fall at their feet with a loud _thud_. "Rebecca, are you good to go?"

"I... I'll try," she says, her breath heavy. "I _have_ to," she adds, with a hand on her belly, as if that gesture only would protect her baby.

At her 'yes' Sarita glances back at Kenny, who is finally joining them as the last two bandits retreats in order to escape the horde advancing.

"Why are the three of you still here, dammit?"

"It may be time for the baby, Kenny. I've got Sarah, but we have to help her too-"

"Alright, alright, I got her," Kenny puts one of the pregnant lady's arm around his uninjured shoulder, sustaining her the best that he can in his already precarious situation. "We'll bypass the walkers taking the longer road to the deck, where we'll be meeting with the others... Sarita, if anything go south, be ready to run."

"What about you two?" Sarita shoots him a concerned glare, as they start to move together in order to avoid the horde near them.

"We'll manage," Kenny simply answer, gritting his teeth as he helps Rebecca up once again.

* * *

" _Gaaawk!_ "

Clementine is suddenly brought back to reality by a howl of pain which makes her jolt awake, startling her so suddenly that every single hair on her head immediately stands up from the fear. She looks around herself, initially not recognizing her surroundings nor the people she is with; she also realizes she's lost track of time. Just as she's starting to remember...

" _Aaaaargh!_ "

A second cry of pain.

"Nick, please, just... hold on! _Please!_ "

She recognizes that voice. It's Luke's.

"We've almost done, bud, c'mon," Luke's voice keeps playing in her head, as if it's some kind of mantra helping her distracting from the horrible screams which ring in her ears. His machete flashes in the air once again, with a sinister glow. "I know you can do this..."

"We gotta stop the blood, just like we did with Sarita," comes in a third voice. Is it Bonnie's...?

Clementine's vision comes back just for a bare instant; everyone is around Nick, who can't stop fidgeting on the ground, every inch of his body shaking as the others try to stabilize what looks like to be a newly fresh stump, just below his knee.

"Clem," someone very close to her starts to say, and a yellow jacket flashes into view. "Clem, can you hear me?"

"I... w-where... where are the others...?" she can barely finish her sentence, before being cut off by the blackness returning all around her.

* * *

"Is that...? MIKE!"

A tall man looks behind himself, just to see four familiar figures approaching. Several walkers heads turn around, their jaws hungrily clicking in the direction of the sound.

"Are you out of your damn mind, Kenny?" the dark man says, his eyebrow arching. "They probably heard us!"

"It's just a bunch of slow ass pile of dead shit, we need help here," Kenny quickly says, as he feels his losing his grip on Rebecca.

Mike takes the hint and helps him sustaining Rebecca. "Where are the others?"

"They head towards the deck, should be pretty defendable in case the horde heads that way," Kenny answers, before looking at him, a thought suddenly crossing his mind. "You didn't see them? What about Clementine?"

"I told you, you're the first I see since getting separated."

"Dammit!"

 _What if they're not at the meeting spot once they arrive?_

Kenny can't believe he's been so stupid trusting that turd with his girl. And that fucking Jane. He's sure he saw a glimpse of her too after he went rescuing Sarita and the others.

His thoughts get darker and darker as they head towards their chosen destination.

He could only hope that Clementine would be there too.

* * *

 _"_ _We're not leaving Kenny! That's not fair!" Clementine glares at Luke with hostility and she clearly sees him flinching with surprise; he hasn't done that since she told him to leave Kenny alone back at the lodge, after the Duck incident. She doesn't care, though. "We stay together," she remarks, strongly._

 _"_ _Life ain't fair, Clem. We're just trying to make the best of a bad situation here. No one wants to leave Kenny," he tries to rationalize with her, glancing at the others around him, looking for support. "I'm sure that he would suggest the same if—"_

 _"_ _No," the girl cuts him off, "you don't know that. You don't know anything." She's almost shaking now, emotions filling her up like a jar going to explode; she has repressed them for so long, for too long. "I just found him again, I. Will. Not. Abandon. Him," she says, determined._

 _"_ _Clementine's right," Rebecca says, still trying to consoling Sarita down, "we can't leave him, not after what he did not only for her, but for all of us." She looks straight into Luke's eyes, "how can you forget he's got hurt to cover up for you as well? How could you leave him? Or Alvin?"_

 _Luke sighs, glancing down for a second. "Look, as I said, I don't want to leave them. Just saying sometimes we need to think for the whole group… If we stay, Carver will make us all pay, and we don't even know if he's gonna wake—"_

 _"_ _He will wake up," Clementine spits out angrily, clinching her hands into fists._

 _"_ _Clem… Clem, I'm sorry for what happened, I really am," Luke tries again, reaching for her, "I know you see him as your family, but—"_

 _"_ _He_ _ **is**_ _my family," she firmly states, even though she can feel the tears in her eyes starting to push behind her eyes even more persistently, "and I thought you could understand it. I thought you were the one who said that 'family is the most important thing in this world'." She can see she's struck him with her own words, as his gaze is haunted by shock and remorse. "I will kill Carver myself if he lays a hand on Kenny again."_

 _"_ _Now, now… that won't be necessary, darlin'," interrupts a voice from behind her, and she feels her heart jump as she recognizes it, "I think I've earned the right for that."_

 _Kenny's uncovered eye stares softly at her, apparently aware of the discussion they just had about him. Clementine waits for Sarita to hug him, before she flings herself into his arms, trying to fight the hot tears she managed to repel until this very moment._

 _"It's alright... it's alright," Kenny says into her ear, as he wraps her into a safe embrace._

 _"I... I thought..." she chokes up, finally giving in to her fears._

 _"You're not gonna lose me again, darlin'," he whispers, sensing her unspoken words. He releases her once he feels her whimpers coming to an end and he kneels in front of her, taking in her bruised face. "Those fuckers did this to ya?"_

 _Clementine nods slightly, and she can see his eye darkening as his anger rises. "It's not hurting like before, though," she reassures him, while he gently wipes away the tears from her uninjured cheek, in a soft caress._

 _"We're gonna get the hell outta 'ere and they're gonna pay for it, darlin', I can assure you that."_

* * *

"This is _not_ what we had in mind, Jane."

"And what's that, exactly?"

Clementine slowly wakes up again, voices bothering her already troubled sleep.

"I promised Kenny we'd meet at the deck." Luke notices his voice is getting louder and he tries to lower it in order to maintain their conversation strictly quiet. "We stopped here just to give Nick a chance to survive the bite by cutting his leg off, but we're supposed to regroup with everyone still out there..."

It's too late though, as Clementine can hear them perfectly, and she has some difficulties trying to pretend she's sound asleep as she hears Jane's next words.

"That's a bad idea, and you know it, Luke."

"Wait, what?"

"I understand you see them as your group... Or at least, I'm really trying to," Jane's voice gets even more difficult to be heard now, if possible, "but you have to agree with me when I say they're also _liabilities_ -"

"No," Luke says, interrupting her. Clementine feels his gaze slowly leaving Jane's frame in order to stop on herself, as he clearly shifts his body towards her direction. "They're my people, we're not abandoning them," he firmly states.

There's an uncomfortable silence setting in for a few seconds. Then, Jane rises on her feet.

"Fine. It's your choice," she says, sounding completely indifferent to his speech. "I will not stay only to see another group break and fall out. Tell Clem... I tried to make this work."

"Yeah... by stealing from others," Bonnie's voice comes in, surprising them. "We all saw how well that turned out. You know what, Jane? Just go."

Clementine can't see well with her eyelids closed, but she could swear Jane shot her a dark glance.

"I am," she remarks, before taking her leave, with a last momentarily look at Luke, almost to see if he was gonna do something in order to stop her.

He doesn't move, though, absorbed into his own thoughts.

And Clementine hears the cracks on the wood of their small makeshift refuge signaling Jane's exit.

"Clem? You're awake, aren't you?"

The girl slowly turns to face Bonnie and Luke, knowing it would be pointless to pretend any longer. "How's Nick?" she simply asks.

"He... he's sleeping now. Passed out from the shock and tiredness," Bonnie explains, glancing back at the man resting into the small watch tower room with them.

"We were lucky you grabbed your backpack before getting attacked by those assholes," Luke says, trying to sound both confident and encouraging, even though every inch of his body language is signaling fear towards the possibility of losing his friend. "We had to use almost everything we had left to treat him right."

Clementine stays silent for a bit, thinking at Jane's leaving and then at the others still out there. She was literally dying without knowing if Kenny managed to reach the deck already with the rest of them. A question plays on her lips, unspoken.

"I'm sure Kenny is okay, Clem," Luke gently says, crouching beside her and meeting her low, uncertain stare. "We'll just wait until we can get Nick safely through this small horde and then we'll meet with everyone else there, I promise you, kid."

She rewards him with a little smile, appreciating his words. "Thank you, Luke."

Hope is all she has left.

* * *

"They're not here... _goddamit!_ "

"Kenny, you gotta stay calm." Mike is starting to have enough of his outburst, but he watches himself from showing it too much, as he knows the man ain't in the right state of mind at the moment. "We have a pregnant lady here, we gotta focus helping her."

Kenny looks at him sharply, before letting his angered gaze drop and let out a frustrated sigh. "And how exactly are we supposed to do that without supplies?" he says, his voice lowering in order to not make Rebecca panic. "She may have entered early labor for all that we know, and we have absolutely nothing to help her with!"

"We... Bonnie has it, we could start deliver the baby while we wait for the others to find us..."

"They should have been here already!" Kenny barks, paternal worry written all over his face.

"Here we are, sorry for making you wait."

Everyone turns around to see Luke helping Nick up the stairs to the deck, followed by Clementine and Bonnie, who gives her a hand in order to not stumble on her wobbly feet, still weak from everything she's been going through while being still wounded.

"Kenny?" she immediately asks, trying to get past Luke and Nick's frame in order to verify she correctly heard his voice.

Kenny's eyes widen at the realization she's safe. "Clem! Oh, thank God you're okay, darlin'," he gently wraps his arms around her, taking her into his embrace. "I was starting to think something might have happened."

"I'm glad you're okay, too," she smiles into his chest, returning the gesture and feeling relieved for the first time during that awful night.

They free each other from the hug, both glad to be finally reunited. Clementine watches as Kenny proceeds to help Luke with Nick, showing him his gratitude for having returned his girl safe and sound. "You got some supplies left in there, Bonnie?" he then asks - once they're all inside -, glancing at Rebecca just as they try to lower Nick on the wooden deck, as comfortably as they can.

"Yeah... we still got some water, a clean cloth, a blanket and some pain-killers. I also grabbed some baby formula from Howe's Store before escaping for when-"

"Good," Kenny states, his temporary calmness already set so he could perform his next task at hand, "'cause the time has come and we have a baby to deliver right now."

* * *

 _To be continued..._


	8. Chapter 8

Clementine softly stares at the baby boy laying in his mother's arms, his delicate little body scrupulously wrapped up into a light green blanket. He's fall asleep fast after he's been milk fed and now his cries have finally stopped filling the air of that long, cold night.

"Here, Rebecca," Bonnie whispers in order to not wake him up, slowly covering both Rebecca and the newborn with a new found coat. "I know it's not exactly the definition of _clean_ , since it was laying there for God knows how long, but at least it will help keep the two of you warmer."

Rebecca smiles weakly at her. "Thank you, Bonnie," she manages to say, her voice very feeble.

"He's a cute baby," Clementine says, trying to make her smile again and distract her from the pain and tiredness she's obviously in, as she watches his little hand closing around her own finger, while he's still asleep. "He definitely looks like Alvin."

"He does," Rebecca agrees, "he's the most perfect little man in the world."

"We'll just have to wait and see... I'm sorry."

"He... he survived until now, I know he can-"

"I know Luke, but we gotta stay sharp in case he... in case he doesn't wake up."

Clementine's attention is caught by Luke and Bonnie's voices, clearly intent at checking on Nick. She slowly rises up to her feet, making her way towards them.

"Yeah," Luke is sighing, sounding defeated, "I just... I can't just sit here and watch as my friend dies, I... I should have done more..."

"You did everything you could, Luke. We cut as soon as we could and we disinfected it right away. We also just gave him the last painkillers we had left... he's the only one who can do this now," she pats his arm lightly, trying to sound as encouraging as possible. "A whole leg is not as easy to deal with as a hand, like in Sarita's case... we gotta accept it."

Clementine is about to ask them how are his conditions, but she's anticipated by Kenny, who looks like he has just finished his guard duty and has been replaced by Mike.

"Hey, Clem," he greets her, slightly touching her shoulder, "I thought you went to try and rest a bit, why are you still up? C'mon, let's get back inside."

"I was just... curious to see the baby a bit more," she explains, as she follows him groggily, knowing she should have tried to rest long before now. The interior of the observation deck feels a little cozier with the fire they managed to get started in the middle of the room, utilizing one of the bin found outside, some leaves and some matches.

"He's a nice lil' guy, uh?" Kenny says, sounding almost proud of the fact that he's been the one successfully delivering him.

"Yeah, he's funny," she agrees, smiling a bit as she remembers his little feet wobbling into the air and the faces he made before getting fed.

They reach a small corner protected from the cold wind, just on the opposite side of the one occupied by Sarita and Sarah, who are already asleep. Clementine smiles a bit at recognizing Sarah's features being a bit more relaxed than the other times she saw her; she hasn't slept much these past days, and the traumatic events of this night surely reminded her of the one during which she lost her father.

 _It's good though seeing her trusting Sarita with her presence,_ Clementine thinks, before looking at Kenny sitting beside her, grateful to still have someone like him to have her back. She knows she doesn't necessarily need a guardian anymore, but it is nonetheless comforting having someone caring so much for her well being. It makes the feeling of longing for her lost parents... and for Lee, a tad easier to stand. She knows for Kenny must be just the same.

As she adjusts herself a bit better against the man's warm coat, Clementine lets her eyes wander one last time around the room of the observation deck, before finally setting on Nick, his body slumped against a wall, covered with the only threadbare blanket found alongside the jacket Bonnie gave to Rebecca.

Her gaze suddenly becomes sad.

"Is... is Nick going to be okay?"

Kenny opens his weary eye to look down at the little girl resting in his lap, before sighing heavily. "I hope so, Clem. It's..." he stops to find the right words to answer her question. Clementine has always been a smart kid, he knows that lies and promises simply wouldn't work with her. "... it's a bit early to say what will happen, hon."

Silence falls on them once more, and when Clementine speaks up again, the tone in her voice is so upset that it physically hurts Kenny. "It's my fault he's been bitten. If I hadn't slowed Luke down, he could have saved him..."

"Oh, no darlin', don't say that. You didn't cause any of this, ya hear me?" he wraps an arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer, "this _ain't_ your fault, Clementine."

She rests her head against his chest, her golden eyes suddenly blank and distant. "How can you be so sure?" she whispers.

"Because I know," he says, gently rubbing his free hand over her cheek as she shifts her eyes on him, "that sometimes, no matter how hard we try, bad things happen anyway." _She's still blaming herself for Lee's death,_ Kenny mentally sighs. _No wonder Vanilla Ice's incident made her remember all of that fucking nightmare..._

"It sucks," she says after a while, fixing her gaze on her feet, and she can hear the man give a small, bitter chuckle.

"Yeah, hon, it does," he looks at her with affection, before pressing a kiss to her forehead. "Why don't ya try to sleep over it now, hmm? I'm sure you'll feel better in the morning."

"Okay," she simply replies, as she sets herself a bit more comfortable against him. She starts to close her eyes, gradually falling into a peaceful slumber. Just before she completely surrenders to it, though she reminisces their happy moment in the forest, which almost seems to belong to a lifetime ago. "It was a good shot, right, Kenny?" she slurs, snuggling in the comfort of his warm sweater, with a tiny smile on her face.

"Yes, darlin'," he says quietly, watching as her tired features gradually soften. "It was."

"Next time we can try to catch an elk, what do you say?" she grins a little.

Kenny's hold on her tightens a bit, while - in his head - the image of Clementine being shot replays over and over again. He just can't believe how close he had been at losing her forever. "We'll see, hon... you need to heal up better, before we try another one of our sessions," he hushes.

"... 'kay," she mumbles, sounding very sleepy now.

He waits a few more minutes for her breath to become deeper, before leaning his head back, against the wall behind them.

 _This has been a hell of a long night_ , he sighs.

* * *

Clementine slowly wakes up to a new day. Every inch of her muscles feels numb, still tired from all the running and ducking of the night before, but - though she'd like to sleep in a tad more - she finds herself rolling on her other side, something heavy falling softly from her shoulders. She blinks a few times, before taking in what is clearly Kenny's coat; she smiles softly, gathering it with her and getting up, so she could return it to his owner.

She's quiet enough not to wake Rebecca and the baby up, proceeding towards where she can hear the voices of the others coming from below, from the lower part of the building they're in.

"There's a small town across the river, we could try and head there to scavenge it for supplies," Luke is saying to the small group gathered around. "We can't keep up with what we have right now."

"It's not like we have much of a choice, since we have barely anything left to eat," Kenny agrees, his back facing the stairs to the first floor. "Two or three of us will be enough, we'll move faster and quieter. I'd say Luke and I are the ones better fit right now, while Mike and Bonnie can stay here and defend this place-"

"I'm coming too," Clementine's voice comes in, surprising most of them.

She sees Kenny turning to look at her, clearly taken aback by her sudden arrival. "Clem, you should stay here, hon," he says, trying to sound reasoning enough. "You still haven't recovered from being shot at-"

"You've been shot too last night," she argues, arching a brow in a all-too well familiar manner.

"What- that's just a graze, I told ya," Kenny moves towards her, kneeling down in order to be at her level. "I need you to stay here and help the others at keeping this place safe."

"You know I can help out there too, Kenny," Clementine insists, looking straight into his eyes without understanding why all of a sudden he's acting as if she's just a kid. She tries to find support in Luke, shifting her gaze on him once she knows Kenny's not gonna give in.

"Nice try, Clem, but I'm with Kenny on this," the young man says, making her almost roll her eyes upwards. "We'll be back before you know it, anyway," he tries to smile reassuringly at her.

"Are you seriously doing this? Alone? Just the two of you? I'm more than capable of-"

"Clem, I know I can count on you, I'm just saying you still need time to recover. I trust you to stay here and watch over Sarita and the others," Kenny remarks, looking serious as he gently taps on her hat, and - when he gets up - his tone sounds final. "You can come with us on our next supply run, what do you say?" he promises, only to meet her disappointed stare. She's still carrying his dark green coat. Kenny's eye softens a bit as she just hands it to him, without uttering a word, but he refrains himself from saying anything else, knowing it will be easier for him to just go than prolonging this any further. "C'mon, Luke, we're burning daylight," he finally says.

Clementine can't help but look very displeased as she sees them checking on their weapons before heading out into the dawning light. She walks upstairs once again, the dissatisfaction still visible on her young features as she hears Bonnie checking up on Nick.

"You're awake," Clementine smiles, seeing he's open his eyes at least.

"H-Hey," he manages to say, still looking very pale. "So," Nick is briefly interrupted by his own coughs, "I'm still alive, uh."

"Still kicking around," Bonnie smiles a bit down to him, while she gently touches his forehead in order to feel his temperature. Clementine catches sight of her trying to mask a worried look, before hearing her say: "Here, have some water, Nick."

"That'd be nice, t-thank you," he drinks it up, sounding very raspy as he speaks again. "S-so... I trust my fellow partner in crime went out there without me," Nick coughs up again, "and they left the best of us here, right, Clem?"

Clementine smiles at him, knowing he's trying to minimize the situation. "You can say that," she agrees.

"It's a pity, you know? I just think those two are just... overdoing it. I'd feel better if you went with Luke, to check on him... Uncle Pete was right," he continues, his speech fragmented with constant coughing, "putting trust in you from the very beginning. If I could go back..."

Clementine looks at him. "Better late than never," she tries to smile at him again, to make his mind at ease from these thoughts. "You have to try and rest a bit, Nick."

"Y-Yeah, I'll try to do that," he says, closing his eyes again and setting himself better against the wall behind him, "maybe this time I will dream about my mom, and uncle Pete... and..." he trails off, falling into an uneasy sleep.

Clementine follows Bonnie outside, on the balcony of the observation deck, her voice soft as she speaks in order to not be heard by Nick. "So... how is he doing? It's a good thing he woke up, right...?" her voice suddenly fades, as she sees the look of deep concern in Bonnie's eyes.

"I... I don't think so, Clem... he... he's burning up, his fever's harder than ever... I just hope Luke and Kenny can find some anti-biotics from their trip otherwise he risks his stump going septic-" the woman explains, but she interrupts herself once she feels Clementine shifting her sad gaze on the ground. "Clem, I'd love to do more to help him, but... once the pain-killer will run out he'll be in tremendous pain. And I don't want to be forced to choose between... you know."

As the realization of how bad Nick's conditions are starts sinking in, Clementine just lets her stare wander towards the landscape below them, down to the river. On the far left corner of her vision, she can spot Kenny and Luke just crossing over the little bridge that connects the two banks, before disappearing into the woods in order to reach the city. She can see the pointy roof of what seems to be a church just above the tall trees which surround it.

She could still catch up with them, if she wanted to.

Make sure to help them finding the meds they need for Nick, and everyone else... and food too.

"I... I'll go down for a bit..."

"Clem, I'm sorry..."

"I know," the girl answers, "I'm sure Kenny and Luke will find what Nick needs to get better," she says, trying to sound convincing enough for herself.

She pays attention at not being seen as she snatches one of the loaded guns left under her jacket, and then proceeds to go once again downstairs and out, pretending to have to pee. As soon as she's out of everyone's sight, especially Mike - since he's the one doing watch duty - she makes a run for it, sprinting down the little hill that separates the observation deck from the river.

Her heart is racing fast as she does so, but she's sure it ain't for the fact that she's actually running for the first time she's been shot.

She tries not to think about the disappointed look on Kenny's face once she'll reach them.

No.

Knowing him, he would probably get mad at her for not listening to him, but that doesn't matter for the moment.

She has the wind caressing her back and she's feeling good for the first time in a week.

 _Alive inside._

She thinks about Kenny and Luke's plan. She seriously can't understand them; Luke's still crippled for being beaten up by Carver's men and Kenny's eye has not been treated like it should have - so he still can't see from it and probably won't ever again... how in the world do they think they can get out there alone, scavenging a city that could be crawling with walkers, or bandits, or... who knows what?

A man named Lee taught her how to survive in the merciless world they're now adapting at living in.

And a man named Kenny taught her the importance of sticking to your friends and family till the end.

She hopes it won't come to that, but - if Luke and Kenny were going to need her help - she would make sure she'd be there for them.

* * *

 _To be continued..._


	9. Chapter 9

"How much further do you think it will take to reach-?"

"Next time you ask the same goddamn question, I'll tie you to the first snow covered tree we find."

Luke sighs, managing to sound almost dramatic. He imagined it would not take too long to meet that fate, thanks to the weather they were actually encountering. "Well, it's not like you answered me the first time. And what can I say? I hate being out here in the open, feeling watched..."

"We'll be careful, almost there anyway," Kenny points towards the horizon. There's a medium size shack coming into view, just at the end of his index.

"Do you think someone actually lives in those buildings?"

"And how the hell would I know?"

"Damn, I was just- you know what? Fine, I'll shut it! You're _impossible_."

Kenny doesn't answer, gladly accepting the silence falling on them. He isn't keen on making conversation out there while risking their lives to scavenge for the rest of the group. God only knows what's waiting for them in the town they're currently trying to reach... getting their hopes up for a lucky excursion would only make them feel very disappointed in the end, sure as hell.

 _Crack._

"You heard that?" Luke stops in his track, looking back, over his shoulder.

" _Keep moving_ ," Kenny mutters under his breath, eyeing him darkly.

Luke just goes along with him, trying to refrain himself to make any sound. "Shit. Shit, shit, _shit_ ," he finally caves in, as they pass over a stone bridge. "Some dumb luck we have..."

"Can't you just shut your mouth?" Kenny clamps his fingers tighter on the hunting rifle he's holding. "On my three, we'll turn and shout to anyone who's following us. We'll use this bridge as cover, if we need to. Ready?" As the other man nods in agreement, Kenny starts counting under his breath. "Come out, you assholes! We know you're out there somewhere!"

Not a sound or a move. Luke sharply eyes Kenny, slightly shaking his head as if to scold him.

"Jesus, Kenny," he breaths, "couldn't you just be a little... friendlier?"

"Yeah? Oh, _sorry_ for not inviting them to come over and have some tea with us!" Kenny retorts, raising his voice.

"I-I'm alone," a small voice - coming from the woods on the right side of the road - suddenly interrupts their bickering. "I'm alone, d-don't shoot me, please!"

Luke leans out of his cover with his head, in order to see better who they're dealing with. "Holy shit," he mutters under his breath, exchanging a quick glance with Kenny. "It's... it's just a kid!"

"Yeah, I see a kid who could be lying, for all we can tell," says Kenny, standing up before looking once again towards the girl who couldn't be much older than Clementine. "Come here in the open where we can see you," he commands, eyeing the area around them with suspicion.

"I-I'm not a threat," the girl says, shivering in her long greenish coat, her ash-blonde ponytail swaying in all directions as she shakes her head left and right, "I'll just be on my way and-"

"You'll do as we ask," Kenny says sternly, indicating for her to join the center of the road, "Why are you following us?" he then asks, when she finally does as she's told to.

"-what? No, I'm not!" the girl looks sincerely surprised at this and she holds her backpack's straps closer to herself, as if to find the courage to speak up to the gruff looking man. "I- I just..." Her grey eyes lower on the ground, searching for the right words, or maybe just deciding what would be safe to reveal to these total strangers.

"What is it?"

"Kenny, don't you see you're scaring her?" Luke huffs, staring softly at the youngster. "Why don't you just give her a break-"

"Because I don't trust her, alright?"

"What? But she's just a girl, she can't be older than fourteen! What if she was Clementine?"

"Well, she ain't, so cut the crap and stop being so fuckin' naive! I wanna know why the hell she's been following us-"

"I just told you, I'm not! I'm just lost, okay?" She now looks really desperate for trust, realizing her position just got worse. "I heard talking while on my way and for a moment I thought I'd finally caught up with my group."

Kenny seems to think about it for a few seconds. "A group, uh?"

The girl bites her tongue, possibly already regretting her choice to reveal this information to these two possibly dangerous strangers. "Yeah, we- uh, we're friendly though... Are you gonna let me leave or-" She can't end the sentence, as a bolt flies just past her, before plunging into the fence behind Kenny, just a few inches away from his left side.

"What the- _fuck_ , get to cover!" he yells towards Luke. "Dammit, girl, I thought you said you were alone!"

"I swear, I don't know them!" The girl stumbles while sprinting forward as she tries to reach for a small stone wall to find some kind of hide spot.

"Who the hell are these guys?" Luke screams, flinging himself towards the nearest cover. "Kenny, I don't think she's with them, she looks in trouble!"

"That's the least of my problems right now," Kenny shoots from his cover, as gunshot can now be heard from afar.

"That must be my group!" the girl exults, holding a gun in her hand and lifting her head just a bit to see on the other side of the wall. "Maybe I can reach them-"

"Hey, watch out!" Luke grabs her just in time to evade another silent bolt directed to the girl. "Man, you oughta be careful, girl."

"Yeah, I- umh, t-thanks," she says, nervously, surprised he got her just in time.

" _Luke!_ I'd appreciate a little help here!"

"Yeah, yeah! Coming!" he flashes a little reassuring smile to the girl before getting back to shoot in order to support Kenny.

"Goddamn it! These assholes are fuckin' invisible!" Kenny boldly moves himself to another cover, closer to the edge of the woods. He shoots one of their assailants down, and he can see what looks like a camouflage hoodie falling off the wounded man's head. He pays it enough attention to be distracted, just as a peculiar whistle cuts the forest and other gunshots can be heard.

" _Argh!_ Something got me!"

"They got someone else to back them up down that road!"

"What? Are they retreating...?" Kenny follows Luke's gaze to one large pointy rock. From the top side of it, pops out the peak of a blue and white hat, with a big " _D_ " printed on it. The two men open their eyes wide just as a well known girl with golden eyes and curly locks leaps out of the rock, ready to chase the retreating aggressors away.

"Are you out of your damn mind- _Clementine! GET BACK HERE!_ "

The girl fires four more shots before she stops in her tracks, the sound of the unknown group withdrawing already fading away. Clementine turns her head just in time to see Kenny's mountain-size frame taking all her field of view up.

"What the hell was _that_ , Clementine? You could have got killed-!"

"I'm just showing you I CAN help, Kenny! I thought I already showed you when we went hunting together." Clementine stands her ground, looking at him straight into his eyes without backing away. _Jeez, he's stubborn!_ "I can't believe you two thought it was a good idea going alone to scavenge-"

" _This ain't like hunting! _And are you seriously discussing _our_ decisions, young lady? What are _you_ even doing out here? What if they took you, or worse?!" His tone grows more and more agitated - almost _beyond_ himself -, and the girl can't recall the last time he saw him _this_ furious and worried at the same time. "I told you to stay put, not to roam around as if this was _fuckin'_ _Savannah_ all over again-" he suddenly freezes himself with a gasp, a look of horror on his face as he sees surprise flashing into Clementine's eyes, and then rapidly transforming into deep hurt.

He knows what he's done to her.

What she's thinking about.

 _Lee. Lee... dead, because of her._

 _Fuck, fuck me and my stupid mouth._

"Clem... Clem, I'm sorry, darlin'," he tries to reach for her arm, but she slips out of his gentle grasp, already turning away from him. "Clem, I didn't mean-"

"Let her go, Kenny," Luke says quietly, approaching the other man, his eyes softening as they follow Clementine's walk to the rock, where she sits herself on, giving them her back, "I think she needs some time alone." Kenny looks too dumbfounded by sorrow and remorse to answer him, so Luke just turns his eyes towards their new found, almost forgotten, stranger girl. "Hey, you haven't told us your na- _fuck!_ "

The unknown girl is on the ground, blood forming a small pool as it pours from her lower leg. She grunts, looking to be still somewhat conscious as Luke tries to lift her off the ground.

"Kenny! Quick, she needs our _help!_ "

He has to call out for the other man a few times before he finally realizes what's going on. "Damn it... we need to stop the bleeding!"

"Checking her backpack- yeah, she got something to patch it up!"

"Alright, good," Kenny breaths, trying to focus on the task at hand, while his mind can't help but race at his arguement with Clementine, "'cause we won't make it in time for our place," he looks up in front of them, his eyes setting on the small building a few meters away. "That shack is still our best shot, c'mon."

They lift the wounded girl up, hollering for Clementine to follow them closely as they try their best to rapidly move away from the road, which could still be proved dangerous if those men came back. Once they reach the place established, Clementine goes scouting ahead, without uttering a word.

"Clementine..." Kenny worriedly watches as she carefully opens the door, sweats falling from his brow because of the effort. Clementine checks if the place is safe to be used as shelter, her gun ready to shoot any potential threat.

"It's safe," she shortly announces, her voice colorless as she averts the man's guilty eyes.

"Okay," Luke goes ahead, helped by Kenny in laying down the girl on a relatively comfortable spot. "Okay, where do we start now?" He fiddles with the backpack, drawing out a bottle of disinfectant and some bandages.

"No bullet, gunshot hit the side of her leg but at least it went right through," Kenny shreds the area of the jeans around the wound, as Luke hands him the antiseptic. "We'll need to minimize the blood loss first, then clean it and tightly cover it up, she's probably just in shock or something-"

"I... I'm very much a-awake..." the girl's grey eyes flash open, focusing on her surroundings. "W-what's going on...?"

"You've been shot," Luke says, trying to sound reassuring enough, as Kenny keeps working, "but it's gonna be okay," he smiles a bit, hoping for some support from Clementine, but the other girl just looks absently over. "S-so... what's your name?" he continues, trying to distract her from the pain she's obviously in.

"W-Willow," she just says, letting out a sigh, as she tries to cover up a sudden sting.

"No need to act tough, girl," Kenny chuckles a bit, as he keeps pressing on the front of her leg -just below the knee - to stop the bleeding, before starting to pour some of the disinfectant on the wound. "So... you, uh... went on a run recently?" he nods towards the rich amount of supplies in her backpack, only to be awarded by a look of mistrust. "Hey, we're the one helping you, here."

The girl called Willow seems to be reflecting upon it for some moment, only interrupted by occasional pangs of sudden pain. "It's not like I have much of a choice, uh?" she groans, pondering at her current situation.

"Well, at least we're not bandits or... assholes," Luke chimes in, wrapping the heavy bandages around her leg, while Kenny kept it lifted and stable.

He earns a little, puzzled sneer from the girl, before she opens her mouth again. "You guys have a group?"

Luke exchanges a look with Kenny and Clementine, looking for support about the decision to reveal any kind of information on themselves and their group. "We got a... relatively small one, back at our place." He purposefully chooses to remain vague enough to assure them some level of safety; the girl seems harmless and they surely needed those supplies. "Some of us... they're in deep need for supplies," Luke's thoughts go to Nick and his unfortunate fate; he wonders if he'll be back in time for helping him before... well, before the worst could happen. "What about you? You talked about being lost, before."

"Yeah, part of my group is probably still looking around here searching for me... but they'll surely stop before nighttime," she explains, ending with a sad note. She looks deep in thought for some moment, while her eyes shift for some kind of unknown reason from Kenny and Clementine, before setting back on her legs. "My group is part of a big settlement stationed up north, we were out for a supply run before those bandits caused havoc in the woods, dividing us in the process of fend them off." She interrupts herself again, her greyish gaze now lingering on the rest of her supplies, still safely tucked in her backpack. "There's more of that left, where I come from. If you help me get back to my group, I know they'll be grateful and surely appreciate what you did," she nods towards her newly bandaged leg.

Kenny sucks a deep breath in before opening his mouth to speak. "And where would that be?"

Willow averts her eyes from her wound in order to meet his, a little, wistful smile slowly taking shape on her lips, as she utters in a serious voice: "To Wellington."

* * *

 _To be continued..._


	10. Chapter 10

"Clementine." The girl stops in her tracks, turning her head in order to watch Kenny's snowy frame limping alongside Luke, both of them still supporting the wounded girl with their body. "Don't wander too far, darlin'. Stay close," the man says, groaning quietly as he adjusts Willow's arm behind his neck a bit better, before starting to move again.

The curly haired girl barely nods, slowing down a tad and lifting her gun, once again shifting her gaze on the road in front of her. She tries to shake off Kenny's attentive stare upon her back, knowing too well he's still dwelling on their previous heated argument.

Luke looks towards Clementine, before moving his eyes on Kenny's sorrowful gaze. It's been hours since they just kept walking, silently scouting ahead while following Willow's instructions to reach the place her encampment to be. The young man sees a light of longing in the older one only eye while it sets itself once again back onto Clem's back. "I can manage alone, Ken, go on," he tentatively says, hoping not to irritate him any further and trying to sound encouraging enough, "go talk to her."

On the contrary to what Luke had expected to be rewarded with, Kenny simply lets a heavy sigh escape his lips. "She ain't gonna talk to me, that's for sure. And she's got every right not to," he breaths, "I'm a heartless bastard for what I said to her."

"What you said..." Luke tries to think over the words he could use to cheer him up; there would be no point for Kenny to be distracted so much during their perilous excursion towards unknown territories, "... you didn't mean it, we both know that. She knows that, too... You were just worried about her."

"Fuckin' hell," Kenny sighs again, looking at him straight into his eyes, "she scared me _shitless_. I thought she was stayin' back with the others, safe... seein' her out here, shooting those fuckers and almost pursuing them, I just... I just lost it," he drops his gaze once again on the snowy ground they're slowly marching on. "Lee would have my skin for how I treated her."

"She just needs a bit of time... that's all," Luke gives him a little nudge with his elbow, smiling a bit, sheepishly. "Now, enough with this sappiness, old man. Not being a jerk really doesn't suit ya, you must know that by now," he jokes, hoping to lift his mood a tad up.

Kenny's eye narrows, before letting a small chuckle slip from his lips. "You shameless, disrespectful brat," he spits out, though anyone could hear a slight amusement in his gruff voice.

The storm is going to hit soon enough on them, as they find themselves still in the middle of nowhere with a wounded girl to take care of and a few miles of the same, desolate landscape still in front of them. Willow falls in and out from a disturbed slumber, giving them instructions wherever she's awake to do so. For about two hours now, they've followed them precisely, since they'd resumed their walking, but it's getting pretty evident that it's a possibility for her group to have moved from the spot they remembered them to be.

"No," Willow weakly says, as Kenny puts her in front of the fact once again, "that can be possible. My dad's with them, he'd never do such a thing," she takes a sharp breath as a bump on the path makes Luke stumble a bit, causing her pain to the wound. "I-I'm sure he's still searching for me around here."

"What makes you so certain your group will keep looking out for you forever?" Kenny sounding almost quite fed up with her insistence. "Sure, your dad would keep doing that, but I'm also sure the others in your group wouldn't be too keen on dwelling in these woods for any longer than needed. I guess they've families too to tend to, am I right, girl?"

Willow's gaze lowers, saddened. "Y-yeah... they do. But you don't know my dad," she then resolutely says, once again glancing up with hope and determination in her eyes. "He can be... very _persuasive_ , when he wants to."

Luke exchanges a gander with Kenny. He doesn't exactly like the sound of that, and he can see neither his companion does. But they have no alternatives at the present moment, and surely presenting to a father with his _saved-from-certain-death_ girl would prove to be useful to them and their quest to find supplies and - just _maybe_ , if things were to turn up actually pretty good, a new, safer shelter for their own group.

Maybe this time they'd be actually lucky, for a change. They sure were in extreme need for a turn like that.

"There's any chance to drink some water?" Willow asks after some time, her voice suddenly raspy and hoarse. "Please?"

"Yeah, sure," Luke glances up at Clementine, who'd offered to carry the other girl's backpack for the time being, "Clem, could you c'mere for a sec?"

Clementine turns on her heels, after looking around to see if they're in a safe enough spot to stop themselves in, before approaching the two men. Kenny stare softly searches her broody eyes and she just averts them, a small frown of concentration as she occupies herself with the task at hand. "Here," she briefly utters to Luke, feeling no need to stay sulky at him too.

"Why don't ya let me carry that for a while?" Kenny proposes, quietly extending a hand after she's put the water bottle back into the trekking bag. "You could use some rest, darlin'-"

"I can manage, thanks," Clementine cuts short, trying to ignore the glint of hurt flashing through Kenny's eye as swiftly as she can. She quickly closes the backpack, throwing it over her shoulders once again, before regaining her position a few steps ahead of them.

Willow watches her back for quite some time before asking, honest curiosity on her young features. "What's wrong with her?" She glances expectantly at Kenny's sweaty face, hesitating just for a bare second before blurring out her next words: "If I'd talk like that to my old man, he'd surely make me feel really sorry 'bout it-"

"That's none of yer business," Kenny quickly warns her, glancing down with his dark circled eye for just a moment, letting Willow know that'd be a line not to cross.

"... sorry, didn't mean to pry," the ashen-blonde haired girl whispers, glancing back down on her hands, slightly embarrassed. "I guess I'll get back to get some rest, if that's okay for you guys. The camp should be just straight up ahead, take a turn on the left as soon as you see a tree with a cross engraved on it."

Luke simply nods. "Yeah, you should do that, while you can," he then glances back up at Kenny, as soon as Willow's gone quiet. "Don't blame the girl for being just curious... you know, we do look like a mismatched group." When Kenny doesn't answer, his gaze still fixed on Clementine's back, it's Luke's turn to sigh. "Just go talk to her already, man," Luke repeats, taking Willow's asleep form from his hands in order to free him from that burden. "The girl here said we'd just have to walk for almost another mile before the next sign... I'll wake her once we reach it."

Kenny lifts the corner of his lips a bit, his mouth curling up into a sad, though grateful smile. He then proceeds to slowly moving forward, in order to reach the young girl sulkily walking up to the front of them.

* * *

"Hey, Clem."

Clementine closes her eyes for an instant, her steely demeanor once again setting into place so she can easily hide the hurt residing in her chest. She'd know Kenny wouldn't give up so easily with the task of getting her to talk to him. He'd always been a noisy man, sure with good intentions - most of the times, at least, but noisy nonetheless. This time, she really isn't sure how to react to his continues attempts to apology.

She feels a sudden pang of pain sting her heart, just thinking about what he said to her back on the road, while all that she'd done was just trying to be helpful for them. The thought of Lee... dying, because of her stupid decision to ran away after her dead parents still lingers in her very being, the sense of guilt burning up inside finally coming back to her, almost forcing her to break up any minutes now.

No. She would not.

Not now.

Not ever.

She hears Kenny sighing at the silent treatment she's giving him, sounding almost resigned.

"I know you don't wanna talk to me, and before I go on, I just wanna say that you're right," Kenny continues, looking down at her blood covered hat she never parts with, "I should have never talked to ya like that. Nor should I've said what I did about... y'know." Another sigh. "I'm sorry. I really, truly, sincerely am, Clementine." He nervously waits for some kind of reaction from her. _Any_ reaction would actually be good right now, instead of that awful silence she's so obstinate giving him.

Clementine just listens quietly, keeping her cool, distant attitude towards him, almost feigning indifference towards his words. Luke and the wounded girl have fallen a little behind them, clearly slowed down by the weight he's carrying alone. Clementine isn't sure about their conversation being eavesdropped by their new, unknown companion, and she just lengthens her strides, as she can't see Willow's asleep anyway.

A few more seconds pass, without either of them uttering another word.

"Clem," Kenny tries again, almost _begging_ her now, the guilt in his voice mixing up with sorrow, "Clementine, _please_ , would ya at least look at me while I speak?"

She thinks about ignoring his request once again. But then, the pleading note in his voice is something totally new to her ears, so used to hear him bark orders and lose his temper, as of recently. And she finds herself finally drawing her golden orbs on him, unable to neglect him at least _that_ kindness, any further.

He inhales some air and slightly closes his eye, looking almost relieved and grateful for that concession - little as it is -, before fixing his tormented stare on her once again. "Lee... he was my friend, Clem. The only friend I could... _count_ on, when all this sorrowful shit came down onto us," he resumes talking, almost surprising her by the apparently sudden change of topic. "He was there, every step I- _we_ took, at each and every single person we... we lost," he searches through her eyes the same light of longing and loss he's showing her now, to the only human being he has left to open himself to, knowing she would understand his very, same feelings. Kenny stops in his track, his left hand reaching down to gently take hold Clementine's shoulder - in the same fond way he would do to his own daughter - before his thumb affectionately starts to rub across her cheek. "I know I'm failing him, every time I fail ya, darlin'," Clementine can't help but stare into his deep brown eye, his gaze so intense she's unable to avert her own, "but I also promised him I'd keep ya safe, whatever it'll take me to do," he finally says, his warm hand still caressing her skin. " I know I didn't mean any of that bullshit I gave ya before, and I sure as hell ain't blamin' ya for what happened to him. Just... forgive me, for the idiocy I said earlier."

Clementine is going to answer this time. The words are on her lips already, as she feels all the emotion swelling up in her chest menacing to finally make her explode. But she'd never be able to pronounce them, as a loud _bang_ rings a few steps in front of their path, fear and surprise suddenly taking hold of her expression.

"Get your hands up and lower your weapons, _now!_ " yells a sudden, rough voice, coming from behind them.

Clementine watches helplessly as Kenny lifts his gun up, pointing it in front of him and then back, towards the point he knows Luke and Willow to be, fearlessly searching for their still unknown assaulters.

"Don't you fuckin' try it, you asshole!" threatens the voice. "Now you better get your friend to put _my girl_ down, before I give the signal to hurt _yours!_ "

"Dad? _No!_ What are you doing?" Willow has jolted awake, wrestling in Luke's arms in order to be put down, without knowing she's just worsening an already precarious situation. She searches around her, mimicking Kenny as she tries to find the all-too well knowing features of her father's face hiding among the trees.

"Willy? You okay, honey? God, what did they do to you?" The sudden noise of foliage being moved is heard, as a tall man with blonde short hair comes into view, his own firearm still drawn on the strangers. "You got blood all over you!"

Now that he has something to aim at, Kenny is quick enough to point his gun towards him as he drags Clementine behind himself. "We saved her, you bloody idiot! Now you better tell your fuckin' friends to lower _their_ weapons!"

"I wanna hear it from her, not you, you blind fuck!"

"I'm alright, Dad, please! He's telling the truth, just let them go," she pleads, as Luke finally lowers her on unsteady legs, raising his arms slightly up in the air as he's told to do. "I got this from someone else, you gotta believe us," she tentatively moves a few steps on her own, only using her good leg.

The stranger sucks in a deep breath, seeing her struggling to gain her balance back. "Do as she says, just lower your firearms, people, _everyone_ ," he orders, before moving towards his wounded daughter, who's clearly in need to be helped. "God... I can't believe I finally found you, honey," he breaths, carefully taking her into his arms with extreme care for a man of his size and look. "Don't ever do that to me again, girl, goin' scavenging solo like it's nothing..."

Clementine is raptured by the scene before her, her golden irises unable to leave the frame of father and daughter embracing one another, the solidness of their arms around the other, the sheer joy on both of their faces, as they are once again reunited. It's an oddly familiar view, one she can surely relate to. She feels Kenny's grip on her shoulder intensifying a bit at the sight before them, his eye still feverishly moving around them, looking for any other threat possibly menacing their safety. But it looks like a small group of people has finally decided to come out in the open, showing their faces to them as their weapons lay from their sides. In the end, Kenny does the same, sighing tiredly.

 _It's been a close one, that's for sure._ He glances down at Clementine, who doesn't seem to mind his hand still resting on her jacket and he's surprised by the awkward look on her face - now back on his, shyness suddenly washing off from her expression every trace of the sulkiness she's been showing him before, since their argument.

"I guess I owe you an apology, too," she says, timidly, looking at him as the fondness in his only eye warms her heart, "for making you worry about me."

"Don't get yer head dwelling too much on it," Kenny softly smiles down at her as he encircles her shoulders with his free arm, gently pulling her into a side-by-side hug. "All's well that ends well, darlin'."

* * *

 _To be continued..._


End file.
